Felicity Flutter
Biography
Felicity Flutter grew up in West Sussex and later lived in London and Kent before settling in East Sussex. She studied at St Martin’s College of Art and Kingston Polytechnic, gaining a BA in Graphic Design. From 1977 to 1986 she worked in the advertising industry as a typographer, illustrator and Assistant Studio Manager, before becoming self-employed as a graphic designer and later a full-time watercolour painter. She served on the committees of South East Open Studios and the Cranbrook Art Show.
Felicity is a Full Member of the Society of Graphic Fine Art and the Wilderness Art Collective. She has exhibited at the Mall Galleries with the RI, Royal Society of Marine Artists, Society of Women Artists and ING Discerning Eye, as well as at Bankside Gallery and the Royal West of England Academy. She was First Place Prize Winner at International Watercolour Masters in 2022. Her paintings are held in collections throughout Europe, Canada, Australia, New Zealand and the USA. She won the Escoda Barcelona Award at the annual RI exhibition and now paints using their brushes.
Artist Statement
Twelve years ago was a pivotal moment in my painting career, when I moved to the East Sussex coast and seascapes became my principal subject. I aim to bring to life the power and energy of the sea with the delicate yet versatile medium of watercolour, using an interplay of detail and looser mark-making.
I concentrate on the play of light and movement on the surfaces of the water, capturing a fleeting moment. Observing wild weather, the forms of each wave and being buffeted by gales on the beach, I really experience the sensations of the place.
I work from a small initial sketch and photographs, often taken on the beach during a gale. Back in my studio, I compose my work in Photoshop, splicing and manipulating my images and adjusting tone, colour, light and shade. I then build up many thin glazes of transparent paint, using both wet-into-wet and wet-on-dry techniques, often finishing with a dry brush and opaque white wave highlights and splashes. I sometimes combine pencil drawing with my watercolours to create extra random marks.