Tony Foster | |
---|---|
Born | Richard Anthony Foster 2 April 1946 |
Nationality | British |
Known for | Artist-explorer, Landscape art Watercolor painting |
Spouse | Ann (Partington) Foster |
Awards | 1994 Elected Fellow of the Royal Geographical Society, 2002 Cherry Kearton Medal and Award |
Website | tony-foster |
Richard Anthony Foster (born 2 April 1946), known as Tony Foster, is a British artist-explorer and environmentalist who documents wilderness landscapes worldwide through his large-scale artworks created on-site. The artworks are watercolour and graphite on paper and include diary excerpts, collected souvenirs, maps, and talismans. Since 1982, Foster has completed nineteen thematically related watercolour diaries or Journeys.
Tony Foster was born in New York, Lincolnshire, England, in 1946. He trained as an art teacher and taught for seven years before serving as a Regional Arts Officer for the South West Arts Council of Great Britain. He is a self-taught artist, initially working in mixed media and silkscreen as a pop artist. [1] [2] Inspired by the methodology of J. M. W. Turner, [3] and Foster's interest and passion for wildernesses and painting en plein air, he chose to focus on his own narrative observations, making art a full-time occupation at age 35. [4]
Foster works with graphite and watercolour paints and utilises the ‘en plein air’ technique. [2] He blends 19th century British explorer traditions of making detailed notebook sketches of his travels while working in a large-scale contemporary format. [5] Foster sketches on-site to achieve authenticity and never works from photographs because he believes a direct response is more important than photographic accuracy. [6] [7]
Trekking on foot, rafting, canoeing or scuba diving are some of the methods Foster employs to explore the natural landscape. [2] [5] [8] He documents the experience of his travels, travelling slowly to encounter flora, fauna, people, and objects, recording it through diary notes and collected souvenirs which are essential elements of his artworks. [9] To develop his paintings, some of which necessitate several weeks on-site, Foster frequently camps where he chooses to paint. [1] [2] [10] [11] He often contends with harsh climate conditions to complete his artworks. [12] [13]
Foster resolves about two-thirds of each painting on-site, leaving graphite notes on the paper for reference, then completes the work in his Cornish studio. These notes provide a revelation of his process and a record of decisions made in the field. The completed watercolour artworks include his diary entries, collected souvenirs, talismans, and maps, resulting in a visual and written record of Foster's encounters on his wilderness journeys. [5] [14] [15]
Since 1982, Tony Foster has travelled worldwide and painted wildernesses, creating a series of ‘watercolour diaries’. [9] [16] He believes in the importance of wilderness and the need to protect it. [17]
His artworks of the American West draw comparisons to expedition artists of the early West, such as Thomas Moran and George Catlin by art historian Mindy Besaw. [18] [16] Art historian Duncan Robinson states Foster's work demonstrates the mastery of the centuries-old tradition of English landscape, drawing comparison to John Linnell, John Constable, and Peter De Wint. [17]
Foster's works have resulted in several major exhibitions. [6] [13] [11] [7] [19] [20]
He resides in Cornwall, United Kingdom, with his wife, Ann. [9] [18]
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Mary Marguerite Porter Zwicker was a Canadian artist and art promoter from Halifax, Nova Scotia. Known for her watercolor paintings of landscapes and villages in Nova Scotia, Zwicker exhibited her work at the Royal Canadian Academy of Arts, the Montreal Art Association, and the Art Gallery of Nova Scotia. Together with her husband, Leroy Zwicker, she owned and operated Zwicker's Gallery; for most of the 20th century, Zwicker's Gallery was the only Halifax gallery that routinely held art exhibits open to the public. It still operates.
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The Foster Museum is a private non-profit single-artist museum located in Palo Alto, California, United States dedicated to the watercolor wilderness Journeys of artist-explorer Tony Foster (1946–). It houses the permanent collection of the Foster Art & Wilderness Foundation and opened to the public in 2016, offering free admission by appointment.