Guest Artist - Al Blethyn April 2nd - 29th 2022

Made in Ross are delighted to have
​Al Blethyn as our Guest Artist for the month of April.

Al Blethyn's art veers quite markedly between genres. Landscapes to abstracts; skyscapes to still life and graphics to illustration. This is probably down to being trained and steeped in the world of graphics and advertising images for so long. Where once every brief required a different visual response, this same approach can now be detected in the sheer variety of his painting . His painting styles reflect personal observations and choices together with a long standing professional discipline. 

Growing up in post-war London, he went through school days with a burning ambition; to be an artist. He took on stop gap jobs, but also had the foresight to enrol at the Harrow School of Art. Later, armed with their certificate and a thin portfolio, he persuaded British Rail in Euston to try him out as a Junior Designer. A few years down the line and he was attending The London College of Printing studying Graphics. By 1967, Al had quit British Rail and immersed himself fulltime in Typographic/Graphic Design at Watford College. He left there in 1969 with a Distinction and several diplomas from professional institutions. ​
As a freelancer, he had freedom to express himself professionally, whilst pursuing another audience with his paintings. This proved an ideal work environment for the next thirtyfive years. However, by 2010 it felt time to bring down the shutters on ABCreative.
​At last, he could concentrate solely on painting without the distraction of running the consultancy.

​Most of his output had been in gouache, inks and markers, with a small percentage in pastels. Gradually though, especially for landscapes and still life, pastels became the medium he naturally turned to. He found the size and weight of these short, stubby chalks had an affinity with markers, which he’d used everyday of his working life. When applying pastels, he liked the techniques involved when blending, cross hatching, smudging and building-up of colour. With a choice of differing pastels types, he could be subtle, controlled or as flamboyant as he wished, as the mood of the picture evolved. Pastels quickly became  comfortable and a hugely satisfying medium for Al.

He’s had several solo and joint exhibitions. And to this day, a nod of approval or an appreciative word from a ‘viewer’ makes it all worthwhile.