Adam Hargreaves is an English painter whose focus is on landscape, and in particular, trees.
Though not present in all of his compositions, trees are often the primary subject. Hargreaves finds special fascination in trees with gnarled, twisted trunks, roots covered in moss and wonderful textural elements that give his landscapes a great deal of presence. In a way, it almost feels as if he were doing tree portraits, so individual do some of them seem.
His work appears detailed in small reproduction, but in larger images shows as pleasingly painterly. Though his approach is never overtly impressionistic and his color palette is often muted, there are times when his compositions remind me of some of Van Gogh’s lesser known works, particularly those influenced by Japanese prints.
I personally respond strongly to visual texture in paintings, and in this characteristic, Hargreaves constantly delights. From weathered bark to soft moss to delicate patterns of leaves and branches, he seeks out the most interesting textural aspects of his scene and conveys them with tactile virtuosity.
Adam Hargreaves is the son of Roger Hargreaves, the well-known author and illustrator of the “Mr. Men” series of children’s books. Adam inherited responsibility for the line from his father, and when not painting, continues to write and illustrate books in the series.
Adam Hargreaves is represented by the Fairfax Gallery which has a selection of his work online.
On Hargreaves’ own site, there are two galleries under “Paintings”, for work from 2010, and 2009. Both come up as a slide show, but it can be stopped and thumbnails can be accessed from controls at the bottom. In the 2010 gallery, there is an additional “zoom” control. While not really a zoom feature in the usual sense, it does bring up larger versions of some of the images (as does clicking on the images themselves).
[Via ensuciando las paredes]
