An exhibition by Shaftesbury’s Richard Hoare runs at Messums, Tisbury, until 26 February.

by Katrina ffiske.

Shaftesbury artist Richard Hoare has a new exhibition, Threshold, at Messums Wiltshire, Tisbury. Most of the works in this exhibition feature the landscape of the remote and westernmost fringe of Europe – the hills of Achill in Mayo and the north-west coast of Scotland.

Light floods into Richard’s studio from a window in the eaves. It’s organised and tidy; one table on wheels holds a large board used as a mixing palette and a long wooden rack with a tight range of colours carefully arranged in separate bays.
“From early on I have used a limited palette,” Richards tells me. “I never use paint in its raw format and I use a very narrow range of brushes, occasionally using sticks.” As a student Richard spent time at the V&A, The National Gallery and Tate Gallery, where he was particularly inspired by Rembrandt. “I saw how few colours were in his palette and was inspired to paint in a similar way improvising from what was available.”
Richard likes to paint surrounded by nature, standing for hours at a time, capturing and absorbing his surroundings. “There is always light and movement in the landscape. I don’t resist the change of light and weather, I embrace it with paint. One time the wind was so strong, the board I was painting took off. I had to let go as it and I tumbled into the undergrowth.”
“While painting the works for Threshold, I lost myself in the remote landscape of Ireland and Scotland, finding myself connecting with the ancient prehistoric cultures.”
On the back of each painting is a solar date mark, the numbers referring to how many days have passed since the last winter solstice. “I believe the waves of renewal constant in Nature are rarely so perceptible than on the day after the winter solstice, when the days lengthen once more. My work focuses on light, so by including this date mark I am acknowledging the central role and orientation towards the sun in my work.”
Richard’s works are inspiring, a mixture of abstract and representational. I left his studio seeing the clouds, landscape and light with new, keen eyes. This exhibition, Threshold, couldn’t come at a better time – the light, bright paintings are a breath of fresh air during the dark months of winter.

Threshold runs until 26 February at Messums, Place Farm, Court St, Tisbury (SP3 6LW) www.messumswiltshire.com.