Simple Wonders: Exhibition of the Paintings from the Collection of Andrew Johns Part Ten: Max Watters
The two Max Watters (1936-2020) paintings owned by Andrew make a lovely segue into our examination of early Australian buildings through the careful placement of a house literally snuggled into the landscape. First we will look at House and Shrubs Kayuga Road painted in oils on board.
Joseph Maxwell (Max) Watters was born in 1938 in Muswellbrook, New South Wales and became known for his vibrant and expressive landscapes usually inspired from scenes around the Upper Hunter Valley in New South Wales where he lived.
Max worked for the local electricity commission for 28 years and with no formal art training took up painting in the late 1950s - switching from portraiture to landscapes in 1962. 1
The style Max used for his landscapes reflects a unique blend of realism and abstraction, capturing the essence of the Australian countryside with bold colors and dynamic compositions which are based in the Naive School of Art.
In looking at painters who include buildings in their paintings of the Australian landscape it is important to note the artist's skill in blending the building into the scene so that the overall composition remains harmonious - another essential feature of works rising from the Naive School.
Max Watters predominantly uses his paletter, colour to create a sense of harmony as you can see by the brown tones in House and Shrubs Kayuga Road nd green tones in House and Hills, Wybong to Sandy Hollow Road.
He has also used the title containing the specific place the painting depicts to engage his audience and give the composition authenticity. In spite of his imaginative rendering of the subject matter - these places were part of the real world.
In a Naive School painting everything from the natural world and human made world has a place and the overall feeling which is conveyed is a sense of belonging - discordant features are avoided.
Max Watters exhibited his paintings widely during his lifetime and is represented in the Natinal Gallery, Canberra and several provincial collections.
If you have time please leave a comment to express your opinion about these two paintings which can be seen in the Simple Wonders exhibition held at the Singleton Arts and Cultural Centre from 23 August to 3 November 2024.
If you have missed the previous posts in this series please use the search tool at the top of the post with the key words Simple Wonders to locate the previous posts.
Tomorrow, Andrew and I will move in closer to look at more of the paintings from his Collection which focus on buildings as the main subject matter especially against a backdrop of rural Australia.
‘All artwork images © the artists. All Simple Wonders exhibition images used with permission of Singleton Arts + Cultural Centre.’
Credit
1. Australian and New Zealand Art Sales Digest (aasd.com.au)