Place of the Mothers Painting

“I have painted for as long as I can remember. From my earliest memories drawing was the activity that I enjoyed most and as a child I would wander for miles, sketchbook in hand. I soon found a desire for movement and drama in my work and now whatever the subject, whether it be dancers, musicians or the prancing white horses of the Iberian Peninsular, these are the qualities that I hope to attain. Life encapsulates movement, attitude, love, beauty, passion, drama, music, joy, melancholy ; so it is my intention to strive to capture these qualities as I perceive them in the subject”. Gloria Dean is a lifelong artist, living and working in Norfolk, UK. Her work has been included in various journals and magazines, and is in private collections worldwide. Her career spans sculpture, illustration, stage sets and the design and restoration of Chinoiserie furniture and objet d’art including work for The Fitzwilliam Museum, The Ashmolean Museum amongst others. Though she has loved every aspect of her career, drawing and painting are her greatest love. The Iberian horse has featured strongly in her work. During the 1980's whilst travelling to Portugal to study Lusitano's in their home environment she pursued her own studies in classical riding under the tutelage of Lord Henry Loch. She has continued to be inspired by the Baroque horse and also produced bold and powerful studies of bulls. Quote; "Mankind has often viewed the bull as a symbol of strength, something that when, overpowered and devoured, confers his strength upon his self-perceived conqueror. I paint the might and the majesty of the bull as he is naturally.... at ease and at peace." In these works is demonstrated her mastery of the art of draughtsmanship which is seen throughout her work, from the dramatic charcoal studies of ballet dancers to the relaxed sketches of passers-by. "I draw from life, making lightning sketches that capture the essence, body language, and mood. I use this as the basis of every painting. Searching for the purity of line, the absence of line, the emergence of form, emotion from colour and attitude. Stillness from motion and motion from stillness." Gloria J Dean.