During my crit a few artists were mentioned. I decided to do some research into the artist Maurice Utrillo.
He was a self taught French painter who specialised in cityscapes who lived from 1883 to 1955. Utrillo began to drink heavily when he was only a child and he was in fact encouraged to paint by his mother as a distraction. His early paintings were heavily influenced by the artists Camille Pissarro and Alfred Sisley. Pissarro was a French Impressionist during the late 1800's and Sisley was a British Impressionist also during that same time; both painted landscapes. Utrillo painted mainly the streets of Montmartre and also churches. This town was very picturesque and mostly attracted 'quiet artists'. He painted Montmartre as it was before the First World War. He was fascinated by the silent streets and bistros of this particular industrial suburb. In the early stages of his career he would work from what he saw whilst out on the streets on Montmarter however when he reached middle aged his health deteriorated and he could no longer work outside. So instead he worked either from his window, from postcards or from memory. He often used pale tones which can be recognised in particular with his 'white painting' period. After this faze he then started to use brighter colours along with freer brushstrokes and mark making.
When researching Utrillo I found a comment that said he is one of the very few painters whose work pleased both sophisticated minds as well as those with a more simple taste.
In relation to my own work I can find influence from his body of paintings using the white tones. Throughout my initial ideas I have experimented with using tertiary colours to help me create an urban atmosphere and to also reflect on the colours I see within the environment.
( Sacre Coeur de Montmartre et Passage Cottin, 1934)
