ROSIE Dean’s Seascapes exhibition opens at Village Gallery, Castlegate, York, today.
Rosie grew up in York, studied art at York School of Art and then headed to Manchester School of Art and subsequently Lancaster School of Art, a move that helped her to develop her skills in landscape art on account of her proximity to the coast and the drama of the Lake District.
On completing her BA Hons degree, Rosie moved to London and onwards to New York, where she worked in fabric design.
After returning to London, she started hand-painting fine art onto furniture, a business she continued after moving back to York in 1992, when she opened a shop in Grape Lane.
Since 2008, she has returned to creating paintings solely, constantly enjoying the challenges it brings.
“I feel total peace breathing the ozone, staring out to sea and focusing on the horizon line, sensing all around me and feeling the elements around me, the sights and sounds, the salt in the air. Pure contentment,” says Rosie.
“Then, in contrast, watching the mesmerising strength and energy of crashing waves as they make their race to the shore.
“These remembered scenes I can take back home to the studio and attempt to translate into a painting that reflects that moment in time.”
Rosie, of Adelaide Street, Southbank, has had many solo shows over the years, including exhibiting at York Art Gallery, and has taken part in York Open Studios for the past ten years.
She paints in oils on board, canvas or paper, incorporating mediums such as pastels, graphite and inks to achieve the feeling she wants in sizes ranging from 1ft to 8ft.
“I’m forever losing or forgetting things, but the atmosphere and temperament of places I remember so clearly. Scenes that shout out, ‘look at me’. Seascape, landscape and more,” says Rosie.
“I work on several paintings at once, and, for example, if I feel I want to be on a windswept beach, I recall all the elements it consists of and travel there through painting. I feel very lucky and privileged indeed.”
Rosie Dean’s Seascapes will be on show at Village Gallery, Castlegate, York, until January 22 2022. Normal opening hours are 10am to 4pm, Tuesday to Saturday.
