Alex Hillkurtz
Biography
Alex Hillkurtz is a watercolour artist born in England and based in Paris, France. He is a Signature Member of the National Watercolour Society (USA), an Associate Member of the California Watercolour Association and a member of French Plein Air Painters.
Before becoming a full-time artist, Alex worked as a storyboard artist for feature films, with credits including Argo, Almost Famous and It’s Complicated. His cinematic background continues to inform his approach to painting. His work has been exhibited in solo and group exhibitions across Europe and the United States, and he regularly conducts watercolour demonstrations, workshops and masterclasses. His book, Sketching Techniques for Artists, was published by Quarto Publishing in 2021.
Artist Statement
In a dusty drawer of my parents’ house, I once found a torn and weathered sheet of paper. Carefully unfolding it revealed pencil sketches of British soldiers and American Jeeps during the Second World War, drawn by my grandfather. Until finding this, I had no idea that he had any artistic inclination. He never spoke of it, but my mother did not talk about her talent either, although the walls of our house were dotted with her framed pen-and-ink sketches.
Here I am, the third generation in my family to inherit this spark. This is a conversation started long ago. It’s now my turn to translate light into paint, to transform emotion into imagery. Watercolour possesses a unique quality for expressing emotion; it’s the voice I choose to speak with.
Surrounded by these whispers of the past, this dialogue takes the form of architecture. Buildings and squares are characters come to life. Old souls reach for sunlight, young upstarts thrust into intersections, and a grande dame embraces a neighbourhood square. Places have souls; there’s spirit everywhere. With a little water, some pigment and paper, I’m here to listen. My brush is the tool I use to translate what I hear.