Andrew Pitt was born in Maldon, Essex and educated at the Gilberd School, Colchester and at St. Andrew's University. He now lives on the Suffolk coast near Southwold.
Andrew has been painting since he was eleven and had his first small exhibition of local landscapes at his junior school. For many years he painted exclusively in watercolour, concentrating on East Anglian landscapes and marine scenes. He now paints with equal facility in both watercolour and oil and has greatly extended the range of his subject matter. Although he has remained a figurative painter, Andrew's aim is to exploit the full potential of his chosen medium and capture the essence of his scene in a painterly way. Andrew is particularly well known for his loose, fresh approach to watercolour. The simplicity of his style and the clarity of his teaching have made him much in demand as a tutor.
Andrew Pitt writes: I paint for pleasure. Whatever the subject, all paintings are a type of self portrait - they reveal the artist's view of the world. The aim of all artists is to paint what they see.
Learning to paint requires two skills: first, the ability to see your subject in an objective way in terms of drawing, tone and edges. The second skill an artist must develop is the ability to render what they see, on paper or canvas, using colour and paint texture coupled with personal decisions on simplification and elimination; this is the more subjective (arty) bit. A good painter is one who sees clearly and can paint the image they intended; one who is in command of the visual language of paint and can use it to convey more than the subject they are painting.
Now-a-days I find my most successful paintings are the personal ones. The paradox is - and painting is full of paradoxes - is that the more personal a painting is the more it seems to capture something universal and timeless.
I enjoy teaching, and as a self-taught painter, I have learnt a lot by trying to explain and demonstrate painting to students in a way that can be understood and that makes sound logical (visual) sense. Equally, I think it is important for a tutor to paint for themselves, if only as a constant reminder of how difficult it is to paint a worthwhile picture.
Andrew Pitt
Andrew has had 15 one-man exhibitions and contributed to numerous mixed shows. He is also a regular contributed to The Leisure Painter magazine and frequently gives demonstrations to art clubs. Andrew also teaches painting courses at:
* Flatford Mill (Tel: 01206 297110)
* The Watershed Studio, St. Osyth (Tel: 01255 820466)
* Dedham Hall (Tel: 01206 323027)
* Grove Farm Studio, Norfolk Broads (Tel: 01692 670205)
* Felsted School (Tel: 01371 822634)
* Cheddar Gorge and the Mendip Hills (Tel: 01934 744188)
* West Norfolk Art Centre (Tel: 01553 631689)
For more details of courses and to see examples of Andrew's work visit www.andrewpitt.co.uk or telephone 01502 723760