Thursday 24 May 2012

More about the Artists





following Artists took part in the Artists for Nature Foundation's Jubilee project on Sark, published by Chris Andrews Publications.


Please click on the names of the artist for more information on their work 


Studied at Falmouth School of Art and The Royal College of Art in London.  A painter/printmaker and member of the Society of Wildlife Artists.  She lived for many years on the island of Bardsey off the coast of Wales and her work has been exhibited widely in Wales and England.

Singer/songwriter living and working on the Island of Sark.  In the ’90s he played regularly on the London folk scene, including gigs at Ronnie Scott’s and the Twelve Bar Club.  His work has featured on albums along side Martin Stephenson and Clive Stubblefield (James Brown’s drummer)




A self-taught artist working in wood and stone, his carvings are inspired by nature, especially birds.  Jaap was awarded the best sculpture prize by the Society of Wildlife Artists in 1991.

Studied at the Art Academy of Maastricht.  Works as a freelance illustrator for nature magazines and advertising.  Lives in the Netherlands where he runs a gallery specializing in art inspired by nature.


A graduate of the Royal College of Art in London.  Works mostly in watercolour.  Published work includes English Nature, Usborne children’s books and BBC Wildlife Magazine.  Teaches art and runs La Maison Rouge gallery on the island of Sark.


Works as a painter of wildlife and domestic animals.  During his career Andrew has won several awards for his work.  He runs the Wildlife Art Gallery in Lavenham, Suffolk.



Anna Kirk-Smith, a graduate of the Royal College of Art, takes her inspiration from the natural world particularly from coastal and marine environments.  In 2010 she won a grant from The Wildlife Trusts in association with The Society of Wildlife Artists to learn to scuba dive.  She is a director of an arts development company and lectures in Fine Art at Hull School of Art and Design.



Writer and musician living and working in Alaska.  Has worked on films as co-producer and wildlife film guide with the National Geographic, Survival Anglia and BBC.  He has participated in ANF projects in Alaska, Spain and Israel.


Has won major awards for her sculptures of animals and birds which she makes from scrap steel and disused tools.  Elected President of the Society of Wildlife Artists in 2009.  Works mostly to commission.


Worked for RSPB film unit and British Antarctic Survey before becoming a full-time artists and illustrator.  He has written and presented two television series.  Former president of the Society of Wildlife Artists.


John has worked with the British Geological Survey, he paints wildlife and birds ‘in the field’ and has undertaken commissions for the RSPB, The National Trust for Scotland and Scottish Natural Heritage.  His book ‘Between the Tides’ documents his response to Britain’s estuaries in pencil, paint and poetry.


Matthew Underwood produces eye-catching works in collage, mixed media and oil. He finds that it is often a tiny piece of information, which may trigger an idea for a work – at the 2002 SWLA exhibition, Matthew won the RSPB Fine Art Award.


Draws from his personal encounters with wildlife,  travelling often with just a sketchbook.  Has exhibited widely including London, Frankfurt, Berlin, Zurich and Nairobi.  Two successful films have been made about his work, ‘A brush with nature’ and ‘Drawn to the Wild.’


A graduate of the Royal College of Art in London and one of Britain’s leading watercolour artists.  His work has won many major national awards including ‘Birdwatch magazine artist of the year 2009′


A self-taught painter inspired by nature, birds in particular.  Most of his work is privately commissioned.  He has been involved in several ANF projects and narrated the film for Pyrenees and the promotional film ’Unspoilt Sark


As discussed in an earlier posting Artists for Nature Foundation is a unique organisation that uses the creative output of talented artists from all over the world as a medium to draw attention to the need for nature to be appreciated as an essential element of sustainable development.


Please visit Chris Andrews Publications for an

 opportunity to order Art for The Love of Sark






Monday 21 May 2012

Little known facts about Sark!




1.There is a large French influence on the Isle with many of the places named in French
2.In August 1990 a French Physicist attempted a singlehanded invasion armed with a semi-automatic gun- has efforts were unsuccessful. 
3.There are no cars in Sark. Transportation methods on the isle are Horse & Carriage, Cycling, Walking and a Tractor with a business license.
4.Sheep Racing- There is an annual sheep racing event which is much the same as Horse racing but the Jockeys are stuffed Rabbits.
5.Annual water carnival- which sees the inhabitants try and make flying machines to launch into the harbour.
6.Little Sark and Sark are connected by a narrow isthmus called La Coupee which is 300 feet long and has a drop of 330 feet on each side. Protective railings were erected in 1900; before then, children would crawl across on their hands and knees to avoid being blown.


The man behind the paper!

Chris Andrews is an Oxford based publisher, who has been photographing for many years- his real ability is not just as a photographer- it is his vision to create interesting images that have a use. An attractive picture, relevant, meaningful and immediately useable in a publication.

His skill to record landscapes, seascapes, wildlife and cookery have common denominators as well as huge challengers. Keeping in mind the desire to produce natural pictures means Chris is kept busy behind the camera in all seasons and photo with a minimum amount of interference.


Chris Andrews in Chile 



Chris has the vision to recognise publishing opportunities and has a great ability to bring projects to successful conclusions.

To have a look at Chris's newly published book please visit Chris Andrews Publications

Below are examples of work included in Art for the Love of Sark published by Chris Andrews Publications. The collection of works are from award winning artists who visited Sark in 2011. The Publication date is 1st July 2012, the book is available to pre-order now for £45.

Also available is a beautiful set of notecards with 6 images selected from over 200 pieces of individual art .





Wolfgang Weber- Carriage waiting at La Seigmeurie




Andrew Haslen- Singing Whitthroat



Michael Warren- Sparrow hawk, Yellow wagtail and Meadow pipits at Little Sark





Wolfgang Weber- Catching Lobsters




John Shuker- Lobster Fishing

Sark


To see more of these pictures and for ordering information please visit Chris Andrews Publications



The Artist for Nature Foundation


In 1990, Ysbrand Brouwers, a Dutch art collector and wildlife enthusiast, took the initiative with a group of artists friends, to portray the beauty of the island of Schiermonnikoog (Netherlands) and invited an international group of artists to join them. The works of art that resulted were published in the book ‘Wind, Wad en Waterverf’ for which HRH Prince Bernhard of the Netherlands wrote the introduction.
Exhibitions were organized, and together with the book the need to protect this precious area was brought to the attention of decision makers and the wider public. Major conservation organizations supported the initiative and their actions resulted in Schiermonnikoog receiving the status of National Park.
Seeing the potential impact of art working as an instrument for nature conservation, Ysbrand founded the Artists for Nature Foundation in the same year to push the concept much further.
Since then ANF has undertaken12 successful projects on 4 continents with 130 international artists. But the work is not finished yet……!

Art for the Love of Sark is the Artist for Nature 20th anniversary jubilee book:

Please follow the links below to get more information:

Sark Blogs

Don't just listen to my opinion on Sark. Visit listed blogs below and get a sense of the beauty of this fantastic Island.

"An Island of inspiration" says Guardian writer Al Kennedy

"Sark's beauty was beauty was of another kind" says Richard Sidey

"Sark:The best place for star-gazing in Britain"

If you have already become interest in Sark then please visit the following link- Art for the Love of Sark. This book is a collection of stunning photographs from Award Winning Artists. As you may have already found Sark's Eco-System is like no other in Britain and is beautifully represented in this book.


The uniqueness of Sark!

Sark's population is around 600 that is an astonishing 0.008% of the population of London alone. Sark has number of unique tourist attractions that attract thousands of tourists each year.

An often surprising tourist attraction is the post box located in Sark. The channel islands post boxes can be identified by their distinctive blue colour compared to the traditional Red common in the United Kingdom.
Post box found in Sark

The traditional post box found in the UK