 In Dragon*Con 2004, British artist Anne Sudworth's artwork
took a central spotlight in the Artists Gallery. As well as being
a guest of honor that year, her painting, The Black Rider,
also graced the entrance badges for the convention. Each day, every
person attending was adorned in her artwork. I had the honor of
sitting down with Anne to talk about her current works and how the
Celtic Legends have influenced her art. Annes first exhibition,
Visions and Views, debuted in 1993; however, her artistic
career started much earlier than that. I was making marks as soon
as I could walk, really as soon as I could pick anything up, Anne
said when I asked when she had first started working with art.
Since her debut, she has shown her work widely and everywhere from
London to Atlanta, Georgia. Anne currently does one major
exhibition a year with a few smaller ones around it, and, though
many of these are near her studio in Lancanshire, her work is
internationally known. I asked Anne if she ever created
illustrations for book covers or other projects. She stated that
she does not do illustrations at all. All of her work is in what
she considers the fine art field. Fine Art, can have a very
arrogant connotation, and some will say that fine art is better,
but thats not the case. It is just different. In a way, it is
easier. What I do, I just please myself. I dont have any
publishers to please. She did say that, on occasion, shell allow
her work be used for different projects if someone contacts her.
According to her website, the most recent example of this, were two
of her paintings used for Lord of the Rings covers. When
asked about her favorite medium, Anne replied, My favorite medium
is definitely pastels. Ive worked in all different media. I love
watercolor, oils, and charcoal, but Ive gotten to work with
pastels. When you discover something youre kind of drawn to it all
the time. Pastels have such a special feel. Its like if I use a
brush, I have to have water and paints. With pastel, I just make
the mark on the board and its just an extension of my arm. To me
that is absolutely the best part. Many of Annes works have
incredible liveliness with lights coming up from trees and vivid
moonscapes, so I asked her if she thought she could get more
vibrancy with pastels than with other media. She indicated that she
believed that oil paints would provide the greatest effect, but she
also said, I think you can get vibrancy with anything, you just
have to make it do what you want it to do. Anne and I also talked
about what inspired her work. She said that nature is definitely
the strongest, especially its darker side. She believes that in
olden times people were more attuned to nature and the magic and
mysticism that can be associated with it. Within the realms of this
spiritual nature that inspires her, there are several key themes
that often take center stage in her work.
Earth Light Trees Anne Sudworth
The first of these is depicted in her on going series, Earth
Light Trees. She has a number of works with beautiful trees
illuminated, not from the moonlight behind them, but from the
ground beneath them. Anne said, The trees with the light coming
out of the ground are an old Celtic belief in Earth Energy. Celtic
legend, the love of trees, and moonlight all play a very central
role in her Earth Light Trees series as well as in many of
her other paintings. She is very passionate about her love of these
things, and it shows greatly in the haunting beauty of her work.
Guardians of the Path Anne Sudworth
Another theme that shows up often in her work, and also falls along
the same love for ancient mysticisms, is her use of what she calls
guardians. Fantastical creatures such as dragons, unicorns, and
large winged cats often appear in her work, once again nearly
always illuminated in her beloved moonlight. She does not believe
that these mythical creatures are only fantasy, but rather they are
symbolic of the earths natural forces. Ancient things like
dragons are guardians of the earth or a protective force. There is
nothing more universally symbolic than a dragon, and even though no
one has ever seen one, nearly every culture has one and that is
important! Anything ancient, olden, or seemingly part of the past
seems to have a spiritual resonance about them. Old castles and
abbeys also appear often in Annes work for this reason. Buildings
are icons of an age past; some still stand strong to the forces of
nature while others have fallen into disrepair. In either of these
states, Annes fascination with them has led her to create some
incredibly moving images of them. She has the ability to capture
the spirit of a place in her paintings, and I believe that comes
from her passion and respect for nature and its older, more secret
shadows. Lastly, Anne has a great love for animals, especially
horses, and has been around them since she was young. She used her
own horse as the model for her unicorn in Edge of the World
and several other paintings. Her love goes so deep for animals she
even has a page on her website devoted to them, and as animals are
a part of nature, they often inspire her and are present on
occasion in her work.
The Edge of the World Anne Sudworth
Theres a wide range of views on what formal training and art
school can offer to an aspiring artist, and because of this, I
asked Anne what she thought. Art College is a big no-no for me. I
think being an artist is born in you. I think you should be able to
go to Art College, and they should be able to help you develop
yourself. They shouldnt force their ideas on you or make you work
in a certain way. Anne did attend art school for a short time and
indicated that she made a lot of friends and had a good time.
However, she also thought it seemed as if the professors wanted
people to work their way. She did say that art school does have its
good points, such as being able to meet other artists and have them
criticize and critique. Plus, some practices in illustration and
graphics may need extra classes to help show artists how to work
with certain tools. She said in closing to the question of art
school, I have no problem with people going. Its good working
with people, but dont let them tell you how to paint whats in
your heart and in your head. Some artists like to work in
illustration and be given certain criteria they need to incorporate
into their work for a certain project. Anne considers herself in
the field of Fine Art, where she does not have to paint for anyone
but herself. I asked her, in closing, what advice she would give to
aspiring artists. This is what she said, Paint whats in your
heart and listen to yourself. Take criticism! However, if you
really feel strongly do what you want. I cannot paint to please.
I have to do what I want. Creation will just happen, dont force
it. Your art will develop as you do. If you love trees or love
color, you do what is in your heart. She also mentioned that when
you paint what you feel, and if it moves you, it will likely move
others also. She added, I ask myself, If you were on a desert
island, and youre on your own, would you be painting what youre
painting now? And if youre not, youre painting to please or to
humor someone else.
Whitby Abbey Anne Sudworth
In my short time talking with Anne Sudworth, I found her to be a
very passionate artist. Her love for dark shadows of nature and for
the spiritual mysticisms that fascinates her inspires her
beautifully evocative paintings. Each piece of her artwork is a
piece of her heart and of the feelings that the places around her
inspire. Just from viewing her work, seeing the vivid hues and dark
shadows can cast the viewer into another world where one can almost
feel the magic she creates. Whether because of her attuned nature
to that of ancient Celtic legend, or because of her passion for
nature, all of her work seems to capture the spirit and energy of
the earth and perhaps of the past. 
- Enchanted World The Art of Anne Sudworth Text by
John Grant is an amazing book of Annes artwork, and is
available in select bookstores. Additional images and excerpts from
her book available on Annes website.
All supporting images are copyright, and
cannot be
copied, printed, or reproduced in any manner without written
permission from the artist.
 We would like to thank contributing writer Diana Hilliard [dido6] for the outstanding interview, and
we invite you to visit: dido6's Renderosity Art Gallery dido6's Renderosity MarketPlace store. Oct 24,
2005 |
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