Mark Spain

With a succession of profile-enhancing commission for the likes of London’s famous Kew Gardens, The Dorchester Hotel and National Westminster Bank under his creative belt, celebrated contemporary figurative artist, Mark Spain is no stranger to the commercially artistic spotlight, as elsewhere his stunning paintings have been distributed to a worldwide audience. In addition to this, Spain’s work has also been the subject of countless exhibitions and solo shows throughout his professional career to date, including showcasings at the prestigious Chelsea and Hampton Court Flower Show, the 20th Century British Art Fair and the Barbican Contemporary Print Fair to name but three.

Numerous of Spain’s original canvases have been reproduced as fine art prints of peerless quality, manifesting themselves as limited editions and silkscreen variations ever since he signed up to one of the UK’s most noted fine art publishers, Washington Green, who have continued to represent Spain as he quickly emerged as one of the country’s leading exponents in the modern figurative genre. And since Washington Green’s timely intervention back in 2000, Spain’s individual and collective works of art have figured prominently in further galleries throughout Britain, while many of his hallmark pieces can be found today in private collections discovered around the globe and including; Spain, Belgium, France, New Zealand, Australia, Holland, Hong Kong, Japan, USA and Canada.

A now well-established and hugely relevant figurative artist in his own right, Spain’s creative story began at an early age, when he was acknowledged as being a dab hand at art and obviously encouraged to further his talent and interest at appropriate junctures during his upbringing. After school, Spain studied Technical Graphics at Medway College of Art in his native Kent, before setting up a printmaking studio, on leaving, in the same South-Eastern county, producing original etchings. Spain’s big break duly arrived in the aftermath of the famous storms of 1987, which wreaked havoc over the UK in general, yet reserved much of its venom for the South-Eastern counties. One of the worst hit areas was Kew in South London, and in particular its world famous botanical gardens which bore a lot of the brunt of the adverse weather conditions at the time.

Keen to re-establish themselves in the aftermath of the devastation, Kew Garden approached Spain with a commission invite, with a view to producing a series of limited edition etchings, which he obliged them with in October 1987 as an ambitious artist looking to make his mark on the contemporary painted world. Suffice to say Spain, whilst in more recent history known as a figurative artist of some pedigree, has continually been interested in and showed great feelings and compositional sensitivities for the art of landscape capture too. Indeed, Spain is nothing if not a vigorous and versatile practitioner, constantly experimenting with differing subject matters and techniques, which he then looks to routinely apply to a cross-section of images including traditional landscapes, figurative work, abstracts and impressive collagraphs to boot.

It wasn’t until 2000 – and his well-starred collaboration with Washington Green – that Spain’s figurative work (from which he’s made his considerable name since) was initially received, yet excellently received it was and in no time at all his first edition sold out. In fact, so successful was Spain in this arena that a mere couple of years later he was awarded the Fine Art Trade Guild’s ‘Up and Coming Published Artist’ gong in 2003, while also being nominated for the same respected industry body’s ‘Best Selling Artist’ award the following year. From then on, Spain engrossed himself in the origination of a galaxy of figurative compositions, spurred on by his initial successes, which concentrated on the female form, predominantly and its canvas interactions with her surroundings, focusing on form, texture and colour. Yet Spain’s range of work has perpetually evolved and today he encompasses cityscapes amongst other genres, which to our mind represents just the start of a whole body of exciting future works.

The final word goes on the subject(s) goes to Spain himself though, as he says; “Having experimented with many forms of imagery in recent years, figurative work has been the most challenging and satisfying. My main goals are always to create a certain amount of movement within the image, with particular emphasis on setting a mood and atmosphere”. Encapsulating the undoubted theory behind his signature works we’ve enjoyed to date, Spain adds; “I would like the viewer to be intrigued as to the possible thoughts of the subject, which can only add to the effect of the picture. Pictures I believe must have a life of their own to allow an on-going interest”.