Designer Desire: Maurice Wade

Maurice A. Wade (1917-1991) was a British painter who specialised in documenting the industrial landscapes of the Stoke-on-Trent area.

Maurice Wade worked in using a monochromatic or very limited palette in a manner reminiscent of Trevor Grimshaw or Jack Simcock. He had a very Northern Industrial sensibility, although he and his subject matter are from the Potteries. Even though

Wolstanton-born Wade studied at Burslem School of Art. After moving away for many years – initially serving in the army during WWII – Wade returned to the Potteries in 1951, to teach art at a local primary school. He made his home in Longport, an area that he would use as the subject of many of his landscape paintings, of which there’s believed to be around 300 to 340 in total.

During his career he exhibited at Société des Artistes Français (where he was a gold medallist and exhibitor hors concours), the Royal Academy, the Royal Society of British Artists, the Royal Institute of Oil Painters and the Industrial Painters Group.

On a simple level, these paintings of kilns, mills and huddled houses, often reflected in the tranquil canal waters, were recording the future past, but like Hammershoi’s grey Copenhagen facades and Hopper’s Cape Cod cottages, they tell us something about our own lives and of our own place in the world. ^_credit

Wade’s work is collected by OMD lead singer and bass guitarist, Andy McCluskey. The musician owns at least 21 of his paintings and held an exhibition of the works entitled Silent Landscapes which took place at Trent Art Gallery in 2022. A book to accompany the exhibition was published. Entitled Maurice Wade Silent Landscapes The Andy McCluskey Collection (Orchestral Manoeuvres in the Dark OMD).it is available via Trent Art or Amazon.

McCluskey has shared:

These paintings are a snapshot of a moment in time – they don’t have any people in them – and they connect me to my own background. There’s a ubiquity to these neglected, northern industrial landscapes, although they are the same but different.

Wade’s work is held in the Government Art Collection, the V&A Wedgwood Collection (one of the most important industrial collections in the world and a unique record of over 260 years of British ceramic production), Beecroft Museum and the University of Hull.

Image credits:
ArtUK | Invaluable | Trent Art

https://www.theguardian.com/culture/2022/mar/18/andy-mccluskey-maurice-wade-artist-silent-landscapes-exhibition

Designer Desire: Adriaen Coorte

A while ago, I mentioned on the blog that I want a still life painting of food in ‘the classical manner’ for our dining room wall. When I came across the work of Adriaen Coorte (c. 1665-1707/10), I knew he would be a contender.

Coorte returns to subjects such as white asparagus, summer fruits and seashells again and again. The compositions are usually against a nearly black background and sit on a thick, rustic wooden table.

Not a great deal is known about Coorte; his name fell into oblivion and his artworks were only rediscovered in the early 20^th century thanks to Dutch art historian, Laurens J. Bol. He worked in Middelburg, in the south-western Netherlands, where he’s recorded as having been a member of the Guild of St Luke. Many of his works are painted on paper which is pasted onto panel, an unusual method during the 17^th century.

To date, Coorte’s known output consists of only around 64 paintings. Most are in private hands; however, his work can be found in the collections of The National Gallery in London, The National Gallery of Art in Washington, Ashmolean Museum in Oxford, Fitzwilliam Museum in Cambridge, Rijks Museum in Amsterdam and the Hermitage in Saint Petersburg, Russia.

A few books have been written about his work and are available on AbeBooks.

Additional image credits:
Sotheby’s

7 reasons you should paint your home exterior

Do you have any renovation plans for your home? If you do, several things could be at the top of your ‘to do’ list, such as replacing the windows, remodelling the kitchen or adding an extension. Though it may seem pointless, painting the outside of your home is one of the best methods to give your property a new look and maintain it. Cracks and chipped and flaking paint are signs that you should paint your home exterior; however, other signs could be more difficult to spot.

Painting a house’s exterior has several aesthetically pleasing and practical benefits. Some of these will be apparent immediately, enhancing your property’s features, while others will emerge gradually as cost-saving solutions for when the time comes that you want to sell your home.

Are you considering refreshing the exterior of your home but aren’t convinced to do it? These seven reasons for exterior house painting will persuade you to do it as soon as possible.

1. Enhancing curb appeal

One aspect of home maintenance is keeping the exterior in good shape. When selling your home, the concept of curb appeal is crucial. Repainting the exterior of your property might boost its value and attract purchasers if you want to sell it in the future.

Your home’s exterior is the first place potential buyers see before they enter your property, which is why it’s essential to give the best first impression possible. Painting the outside of your house is the simplest way to make it appear cleaner and more modern. Over time, the condition and colour of the previous paint may change. Sunlight’s UV radiation can cause fading. The colour choice is the most significant influence on a home’s style and curb appeal.

2. Increases the value of your home

Painting your home enhances its value massively as it can give your home a brand-new, transformed look. However, it’s not only about a potential buyer; when an appraiser visits your home, the outside paint’s condition impacts on the final valuation.

Additionally, while certain home improvement projects will increase your house’s resale value, the truth is that not all of them will pay for themselves. Therefore, it not only improves the quality of life in your home now, but it’s also a cost-effective project that will add value in the future.

3. Increase paint life

Your home’s paint is probably weaker than some modern exterior paints in terms of quality, depending on when it was last painted. Present-day exterior paints outlast earlier versions by successfully combating the elements, insects and dust.

As a result, you’ll appreciate the new paint job for a very long time to come, whether you choose to completely redo the outside of your home or touch up a few areas. If this is what you want, first find out what kind of paint your professional painting company uses and assess its quality to determine if it’s suitable for your needs.

4. Protection of insects

Experienced painters can find any indications of insect infestation or damage on the exterior of your property in addition to identifying cracks, water damage and other problems with the exterior of your home.

Termites and other insects, especially if your home has a wood-frame structure or wood trim, can cause serious wood damage. Professional painters will identify areas of termite or insect damage before they start their work so you may fix them prior to your home being painted.

5. Identifies required repairs

Many minor issues with a home before painting tend to go unnoticed by the majority of home-owners. Yet, that initial work is incredibly instructive and can highlight serious problems like rotting wood and stucco that requires fixing.

The reality is that it’s usually always less expensive to fix things than to replace them, even though you may not be jumping with joy at the thought of costly house repairs. So, check your home to see if there are any essential repairs if the exterior paint is getting close to the end of its life.

6. Protect the exterior of your home from the weather

The exterior of your home can be damaged by rain, wind, snow, fire, and other natural elements. The type and freshness of the exterior paint on your home can help you protect it from risk. An exterior recently painted can be considered a “force field” that can withstand weather-related attack. However, some exterior paint can stop water from entering your property and encouraging mould, which is dangerous for your health and a repair you should avoid.

The exterior of your property can be safeguarded by high-quality outdoor paint against invasion by dust and insects that could harm it.

7. Change your style

Consider your preferences when you initially moved into your house. No matter how long you’ve lived in your house, whether it has been a year or ten years, your style has probably altered since then. So you can upgrade your home to reflect your style with an exterior colour you’re fond of, regardless of whether you previously loved it or weren’t a fan of it from the start.

Your home’s exterior paint colour can completely transform its appearance. As a result, your home’s finished appearance could be improved; including the trim, siding, roof and other elements.

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Designer Desire: Charles Spencelayh

Charles Spencelayh (1865-1958) was an English painter of portraits and humble domestic scenes. It’s the latter subject that I find I can pour over for ages, just studying all the mundane objects that are painted in great detail.

For instance, a spent match discarded on a floor, envelopes & letters stashed behind a picture hanging on a wall, a collection of mismatched china on a shelf, a glass case containing taxidermy or a painting within the painting.

Here’s an observation made by Aubrey Noakes in his 1978 book, Charles Spencelayh and his Paintings. The author could just as easily have written these comments in 2018:

Much of Spencelayh’s work now appears to me to possess a nostalgic quality about it. The agreeable clutter of inherited possessions, common enough in most households early this century, and even between the wars, is becoming more and more of a memory as people find themselves crammed into flats and pressured into the purchase of modern purpose-built furniture.

Spencelayh first exhibited at the Royal Academy in 1892 (he exhibited more than 70 paintings here over his life), initially showing portrait miniatures of women. He was one of the founder members of the Royal Society of Miniature Painters.

It was only years later that he began painting his more recognisable lone elderly men in living quarters and workshops.

In the early 1920s Spencelayh was ‘discovered’ by a Mr. Joseph Nissim Levy, a Manchester cotton merchant who’d bought a painting of his entitled Cinderella while holidaying in Harrogate, Yorkshire. Levy and his wife, Rose had previously viewed other works by Spencelayh at the Royal Academy, but they’d already sold.

An Academy exhibition attendant furnished Levy with Spencelayh’s home address and that’s how the relationship between the artist and his patron began. After a while, Levy offered Spencelayh and his wife a house in Manchester rent-free and also offered to double the amount of money Mr. Spencelayh was earning at the time.

Levy enjoyed watching Spencelayh work and suggested several Jewish subjects for him to paint. These consequent works sold successfully. Levy also commissioned portraits of his family members and arranged for 23 of his paintings to be exhibited at the Midland Hotel in Manchester. However, it was the patron’s purchase of several of the artist’s important paintings for sums as high as £600 and £700 that was most valuable to the latter.

Charles Spencelayh had a few other prominent fans including Evelyn Waugh and Queen Mary; the latter for whom he painted a miniature portrait of her husband, King George V to go into her dolls’ house.

There are 176 examples of Spencelayh’s work in the permanent collection of the Guildhall Museum in Rochester – the artist’s birthplace.

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