Brown Madder

They say that those that can, do, and those that can’t, teach.

Well, Clyde Hopkins is a rara avis who was not only an excellent and highly respected tutor, as Head of Painting at Chelsea School of Art, he is also a painter of sublime skill. His new show was organised by one of his ex-pupils and Director of Exhibitions at both Chelsea Futurespace and Chelsea Openspace, Donald Smith, who is a great admirer, and rightly so.

The eleven oil paintings on display are a true pleasure in their freshness, warmth, texture and boldness, and on close examination, give up their secrets of painstaking detail and subtle variations of colour. Even though they could be termed as purely abstract, they tease the discerning eye with hints of landscape, flora and even figurative elements.

Prices range from £3500 to £5000, which for a minor masterpiece is a modest sum these days. Before he moved to Chelsea in 1990, he was appointed Head of Painting at Winchester School of Art, and he later went on to act as an external examiner at the Royal College of Arts, the Slade School UCL and the University of Newcastle. After he left Chelsea in 2006, he was made an Emeritus Professor two years later.  We are in a way fortunate that Mr Clyde gave up the classroom to return to his studio and concentrate on producing more delights. Only his students would complain.

DG

Brown Madder

Clyde Hopkins Recent Paintings

Chelsea Futurespace

Grosvenor Waterside, SW1W 8QP

Until 1 April 2012