Claire Wiltsher

Claire Wiltsher, First Light, Contemporary Abstract Expressionist Painting

Claire Wiltsher is a professional landscape painter working from her studio gallery in Lyndhurst, in the New Forest. Claire Wiltsher’s paintings capture the different weather and mood of land and sea. She states that “total recognition inhibits the imagination”. Claire Wiltsher has a master’s degree in fine art and has exhibited in solo shows throughout Britain, as well as having been a finalist in many competitions. She studied at Lancashire University as an arts student from 1986–89. In 1988, she was a finalist in the Reader’s Digest young illustrators competition and had already secured exhibitions before finishing her degree. The art critic Edward-Lucie Smith chose her work to be exhibited at Olympia at an International Fair. Most of the work was sold, allowing her to embark upon a new journey traveling to Indonesia. Claire Wiltshire’s original artworks are oil and mixed media canvases combining layers of paint with fragments of collage. She scratches through sections of the painting to allow colors from underneath to emerge. She says, “I want to create evocative paintings of land and sea that show a sense of place; different weather conditions are key elements”. Claire Wiltsher uses brushes and different size palette knives to build up layers and create depth. Paint is also flicked or carefully thrown on selected areas, evidence of this can be found all over her studio floor. The majority of Claire’s canvases are square which she feels is important in creating a balance and harmony in her paintings. The outdoors, walking and traveling are the main inspirations for Claire’s work. Poems often accompany Claire’s work and can help communicate specific ideas. Claire Wiltshire has also written a book called Journeys. Claire Wiltsher is the 2018 winner of the Artists and Illustrators magazine Artists of the year.