Frances Campbell
Frances Campbell is a painter based in Cambridge, making semi-abstract landscapes and seascapes in acrylic, pastel, pencil, charcoal and collage, on canvas board and on paper. Frances works from a studio in Cambridge, which visitors can arrange to see, and exhibits with Byard Art in Cambridge and with the Cambridge Drawing Society, of which Frances is a member.
The coast and the river run through the work. Recent series include Seeking Shelter and Ship to Shore, The Joy of Autumn, Tracks in the Sand, Shoreline, and Reflections, which returns to the riverbank, the Mill Pond and Byron's Pool.
Artist Statement
I create bold, vibrant, semi-abstract landscape and seascape paintings. My work is inspired by a sense of movement and discovery: the endless possibilities when you feel the sand between your toes or the sea spray on your face, and what lies beneath the layers of autumn leaves and along the riverbank.
I start within a physical place, sketching and taking photographs, collecting visual clues, responding to the landscape and focusing on the parts that interest me. Back in the studio, I start to paint freely and intuitively, building up layers with acrylic paint, pastel and pencil, often scratching through to previous work underneath until something exciting emerges. I always work in a series, so an idea from one piece can be continued (or discarded) in another.