Halpin, Gerry

Biography

Gerry Halpin is a landscape painter and was awarded an MBE for his services to charity and the arts.

He has exhibited all over the North-west, including at Bury, Bolton, Accrington and Blackburn Art Galleries and as well as at the Mall Galleries London with the Royal Institute of Painters in Watercolour and the Royal Institute of Oil Painters.

His perspective is rather different from how we commonly see the world. He is interested in recording the view from above, usually when flying, either in a light aircraft from Barton Airport or from larger planes taking him abroad.

Statement

‘In the air, time is of the essence and drawings have of necessity to be done quickly done. They are kind of a shorthand of what is seen in a fairly fleeting moment and as such the result the results are interpretive rather than factual. The whole scene is reduced to its linear content where the roads become lines, buildings are mathematical shapes and woodland is an amorphous area. My particular visual concerns are looking at places where different geological aspects meet, especially where the sea confronts land. Here there can be dramatic excitement, when the sea crashes on rocks or a calm when the ebbing tide gives way to warm flat sand.’

‘Acrylic paint offers the versatility I need to reconstruct those landscapes and, where there is a need for extra texture I use permanent resin based plaster.To enhance the glow of reflected light I use pure gold leaf which sometimes seems to be absorbed into the painting and at other times shine out, giving the work an extra dimension.’

gerry@gerryhalpin.co.uk 

Gerry Halpin’s Website