Established 1984
I was an art student, turned long distance driver. A lonely life, with strangers for company, passers-by as friends, but Stars of the Road to guide you. After 20 years I went back to the painting - the one subject I knew. No Still-lifes or Nudes - but Lorries and Roads. Art galleries weren't interested, so our family took our own fixed display of originals around, Nationwide. No-one was doing this then. We travelled the show 22 years, until 2007, to Country Fairs, Transport Rallies and Venues. Starting from April and carrying on through to November we sold paintings, prints, cards and books. After November we’d deliver calendars. We found plenty of work and met some amazing folk. It was quite hard going most of the time - The charmed life always!
When I was on the Long Distance, Colleen my wife sometimes came on trips with me, but not that often. The painting “Windwhistle”, on the right was made in 2013, using Flashe Vinyl paints, and matted behind glass, inside a Hemlock frame. It shows us two on one of those journeys. We are going by the fog bound Windwhistle Pub, late July, on the old A30 between Crewkerne and Chard, in Somerset. The road is no longer open to Lorries. When I started at Arnolds they still had about 20 of these old 8-wheelers, which they gradually phased out for Articulators. Most Drivers of my age wanted the Artics. But me, being old fashioned, never did. The Wheelers were hard work to drive, with no power steering, but ultra well maintained and 1000% safe. The later ones had the Gardner 6LX engine, top speed about 47mph. We did a lot of work to the West of England, often along the A30 or A303. Rochester to Honiton was a day’s work. You knew all about it at the end of the day, especially in the summer! Four drops of Gyproc Plasterboard in Devon and Cornwall, plus return load, took all week. Different times, but far better, I’d say, anyway -
alan / roadscapes
ARTISTIC INSPIRATION AT PLAY - Merrivale
This next bit is to show you the process of picture-making. If you are interested.
This section is inspired by Geoff Taylor, Painter, Colourist, Technician, Craftsman. Fantastic artist in every sense of the word. My very good friend -www.geofftaylor-artist.com /Biography/Artistic Inspiration at Work.
The few paintings I did for us usually start with a memory, an idea, and a title to get behind. Then the plan, to sort out how to do it, and see what lies ahead.
Every painting starts somewhere. Some painters just let go and the painting finds its own way, though Picasso must have had a plan in his head from day one. Pierre Bonnard took years to adjust everything. Everyone is different and there are as many ways to paint a picture as there are people on the planet. My plan is the start of the process and part of it. It takes time to develop but it saves more time by not having to keep re-painting the picture once you get going!
For the following painting it was a combination of memories of the old days, and a dream I had not long ago. in other words - a proper mix up!
The memory was of travelling with Coll in the old days, with one of Arnold’s Transport slow, noisy, steady old Atkinsons. The photo was set at our second drop near Moretonhampstead. We were on our way to a school at Tavistock which was being re-furbished. Via Merrivale.
Arnolds closed down in the 1980s.
The crazy dream was 30 years later. In it I was the last Eight-Wheeler Driver working for Arnolds and driving a more modern Blue Hino 700. The boss, Chasey was handing me the loading notes outside the Lion Garage, Gravesend, Friday night - next week’s work - taking Gyproc Plasterboard and Coving to Moretonhampstead, Tavistock and Croyde Bay, to be loaded over the weekend by the night shunters. My first delivery of butter wrappers for Unigate at Chard Junction to be put on the back, at Horton Kirby Paper Mills, Monday morning, on my way through. When all that’s done book in at Ivybridge for a return load of Paper- two drops - London and Canterbury
MERRIVALE - the Plan
So, I’ve got this idea in my head - a painting for Colleen of us two in the lorry, on a road we’ve travelled. A memory of an actual trip, from way back in the good old days. But with a twist – based on a dream I had in 2010. The road won't let me go. Many painters use only a limited set of colours, half a dozen maybe, which they adapt for the various pictures. Some just use Primary Colours. Some never use Black, or White. But for the last while I’ve kept to 60 or so colours that work with or against each other. Each picture might include any 20 of these. Sometimes I leave out altogether one of the 8 main colours (White, Red, Orange, Yellow, Green, Blue, Purple and Black). If I’m not sure of a particular colour to use for a certain passage, well, I might put in Brown or Khaki.
It seems to work! Also, I use metallics- Gold, Silver and Copper. For Blacks I rely on Carbon Black, for Definition, or make up two different Chroma Blacks –
1. Marron and Forest Green. 2.Indigo and Brown. Straight, Mixed or Overlaps. I use a lot of blue, too much probably. White needs a bit of understanding.
I think I’ve got it. It is the strongest colour, and can take over when you wouldn't be wanting it to!
The picture was planned out from a recent photo of Merrivale Bridge. Instead of the white Atkinson, a more modern (2010) light blue Hino 700 was put in, roughly. So, the Lorry colour is in my “Sunbeam Blue”. The Sky and Background colours follow the lorry’s livery, either to enhance it, or as a contrast to set it off. A few details to note for the lorry:- it has the same fleet no. and reg. no. as the best one of the old Lorries I drove there. An Atkinson style ribbon with the Knight of the Road Emblem on the front, some red lining out, Chevron bumper, New Zealand Style mirrors, and, well, it has to be ropes and sheets, of course! I kept the Header board with the plain Arnold’s style Signwriting. Coll and me are in the cab, not as in way-way back, but as we were in 2016, a couple of old fogeys.
I won’t go on-it gets complicated.
the plan may look rough, but I know what it means!
MERRIVALE - Materials
The board is prepared. I don’t use canvas. The undercoat is 6 layers of White Gesso, each one laid back and the last two sanded. That gives a tough, smooth, bright white surface. The idea is for the lighting to travel through the painting’s colours to bounce back off the white undercoat and so brighten the colours. In the same way that the oil in Oil Paints acts as a mirror to brighten things. In the early 60s I discovered Acrylic paints. In those days it was Liquitex, in Jars, with a semi- gloss finish and colours you couldn’t get anywhere else, like Acra Red. Since the ‘80s I use flat finish acrylic paints- no oil to discolour, crack or get in the way of the lighting, and a Bomb proof finish! So, for Matte paints it’s either Swiss made Lascaux Artist’s Acrylics, Flashe Vinylique, from France, or Golden Matte paints from the U.S. of A.
Here it is Flashe. Been around since the 1950s.
I came across it in the ‘80s. It gives the perfect flat finish and seems to be indestructible. I preferred the earlier formulation in the glass jars. Unlike the other two, Lascaux and Golden, it’s Opaque paint, not see through, so a slightly different technique, of thinner coats and hatched shadows. Ideal colours to get background effects with not too many dark/light contrasts. Brushes – quite a few small ones, 10/0 for example, by proper, experienced, reliable Brush-makers – Rosemary from Keighley, Pro Arte from Skipton and Raphael from France. All expensive to buy, but you wouldn’t be wanting any others for this detailed type of work. The Paint Box to the side shows Oil Paints, but I don't use them now. My dear old Mum and Dad bought me a paint flowers by numbers set when I was 10 years old, but I was told to paint a set of 10 soldiers with army uniforms from around the world on bits of white cardboard. (Dad was an army man). He stuck them up on the wall. The oil seeped through the cardboard and on to the wall.
We should have stuck to the flowers!
Reeves Artist’s Oil Paint Box, belonging to Artist Extraordinaire, Cyril Moss from Warrington
who Sign-Painted and Gilded lorries of Dee Valley Transport at Llangollen, Denbigh, North Wales.
MERRIVALE BRIDGE DARTMOOR
Memories of 50 years ago- coming down to Merrivale Bridge, Dartmoor, not in a Hino, but an Atkinson. We’d delivered to Unigate at Chard Junction, and to MoretonHampstead. We were on our way to our next drop at Tavistock.
I often wish we could do those few delivery trips we had together all over again. It’s not to be, so this is the only way to make it happen – a PAINTING! – but us two as we are today, and with a modern take on the old Atki.
"A Painting is the most beautiful of Lies"
Kees van Dongen Painter 1877-1968
finished painting - extract from our last website
As for the rest of the Roadscapes pictures - scenes of the road from far and wide – I was painting these to order, for a living, from 1984 till 2024 - but the very first lorry pic. was made in about 1960 of an AEC. The title was - “Night Trunker”
The final lorry painting was Painted in 2023-4 of an O.J.Jones Renault, from Porthmadog North Wales, set at Dolwyddelan, with the Castle in the background. Class Cruiser or what! “Y Cymro”
Favourite paintings over all this time would be those with Colleen in mind. Like Merrivale Bridge or the Windwhistle. And The Roundstone Bog Road we use for our home page. Other than that it’d be hard to choose sometimes, but I’d probably go for High Voltage, a sketch of a Scania Mixer Lorry, somewhere in the West of Ireland - High Voltage!
…or “A30 – old road”, painted in 2020 – a very rare one. Best looking lorry ever I’d say, and a throwback to the distant past. When life on the Road was a little bit simpler - and a lot more civilised. Plus the B.R.S. which I was a fan of. The Driver here is based on Alan “Dad” Skinner, from Wainscott. He was a brilliant 8-wheeler driver I worked with at Arnolds. He had all the time in the world to spare. Someone to admire. The lorry is a 1956 Bristol HG with a Longwell-Green built cab. Based at Newton Abbot, Devon. Set at the Snowdon Hill Tollhouse. Just past Chard. Looking Westwards, about 1957. This section of road of the old A30 is not open for lorries anymore so I‘m told. The original A30 turned left at the Tollhouse for Exeter.
Favourites
There’s one other, called “Day’s End”, which I’ll tell you about some day.