Doreen Fletcher’s New Paintings
It is my delight to publish Doreen Fletcher‘s new paintings to be seen in her forthcoming exhibition CORNERS at Townhouse Fournier St, E1 6QE, from next Saturday 13th June until Sunday 5th July. Below Doreen introduces her paintings in her own words.
House on the Corner
‘This north-facing house is directly opposite Wanstead Flats, on the front line of the densely populated streets of Forest Gate. Built in the 1870s, it has seen horses and carriages trotting down the road, cows wandering past, then anti-aircraft gun emplacements on the Flats during World War Two, shaking the foundations of houses when they fired at the enemy planes. My painting captures the moment when the street lights come on and illuminated windows offer a tantalising glimpse of interiors, as inhabitants return and retreat into their homes.’
Look At Me!
‘A mother raises her hands encouragingly at her small child bravely tackling a ride for the first time. Three times a year, I am drawn to the bright lights of the fair on Wanstead Flats, unable to resist the temptation to bring order and permanence to the chaos and transience. Painting any fairground scene involves uniting a plethora of colours, light sources and interlocking shapes and forms that appear indistinguishable at first glance. For me, if the painting is to work, all these elements must hang together.’
Capel Moon
‘Snow is rare in London with a few exceptional years, 1979 being the most notable in my memory. I have not done many paintings depicting snow, although I have always been fascinated by the transformation and magic wrought by its fall. December 2024 was exceptionally cold and the Wanstead Flats were transformed briefly into a wonderland, particularly at night – most magical just before darkness fell when the snow illuminating the Flats was balanced by the glow in the sky and the lights of surrounding houses.’
Maryland
‘My task here was to create of a satisfying composition, encompassing the expanse of white-painted brickwork work on the right, and I sought to resolve this by placing a man seated on the wall. The warm blue and orange tones of the shop emphasise the contrast with the cool whites above and greys in the foreground.’
Nana Yaa
‘When I moved to London in 1972, I encountered fruit and vegetable stalls outside tube stations for the first time. On a wet January morning in Leytonstone, I saw this shop across the road where the produce glowed through the gloom like a beacon, a scene enhanced by the young man sitting in front, oblivious of the cold, concerned only with his phone.’
Shop on the Corner
‘I have been painting my immediate environment for decades now. For the majority of this time I have lived in East London, always with a small general grocery shop round the corner. On extended stays in the country, I find I forget to buy essential items on my weekly shopping trip, since in the city it really does not matter. This painting is of my corner shop in Forest Gate but it could be almost anywhere.’
Short Cut
‘I discovered this view of the petrol station on Aldersbrook Road in Wanstead by accident when my dog Charlie ran into the bushes chasing a squirrel. It made me think of my childhood when I loved looking at familiar sights from unusual angles. I remember once drawing our living room sitting from the top of a step ladder and the space was transformed into a place of mystery for me. So this is my new perspective on the petrol station, which I had passed on the main road hundreds of times without really looking.’
Stanley at the Duke
‘The neon sign of the Duke of Wellington in Spitalfields draws the eye as you cross Commercial Street. Yet even though the pub is situated on the corner of a busy road, it is a peaceful backwater, a station of calm.’
St Gabriel on the Flats
‘This is a well-known local landmark on Wanstead Flats. I have built the composition in horizontal bands to frame the silhouette of the church, just hinting at the lights of the garage on Alderbrook Road that appears in another painting in my exhibition. Set during the brief lull of twilight, the pale violet sky and a visible moon conjure a quiet moment of transition.’
Sunday Morning, Maryland
‘Maryland is usually clogged with cars, people hurrying to and from the nearby station, and noisy with the clamour of buses stopping and starting. Yet on an unusually sunny morning in winter, I found it deserted and was struck by the shapes made by this cluster of shops, and the shadows cast on the walls. My composition celebrates a rare moment of quiet in the midst of the busy metropolis.’
Venus Ascent
‘I chose an unusual perspective for this painting, focusing on the wall of steps leading to the bridge with yellow graffiti, rather than the barge moored alongside or the bridge itself, either of which would have been more obvious choices. This decision challenged me to unite the elements of the picture through use of light and colour. Though absent of figures, the scene records evidence of human activity, my aim was to capture a pause.’
Walk On By
‘This is Woodgrange Road, Forest Gate, on a freezing February night. I was impressed by the contrast between the cold glare of the seafood market and the deep tones of the winter sky. I employed the wet pavement, reflecting the competing blue neon and LED lights, to evoke the mood of an East London street in winter.’
Yellow House
‘Opposite these houses lies the beginning of Epping Forest in the form of Wanstead Flats. This yellow house and its companion caught my attention, while out walking one cold November evening, as a mecca of warmth and comfort just the other side of the road from the Flats.’
Donovans (Coloured pencil drawing)
Donovan Bros is the only evidence in Spitalfields of the thousands of Irish immigrants who came here in the nineteenth century. The two O’Donovan brothers, Jeremiah and Dennis, came to Liverpool from Dublin in the eighteen-thirties at the time of the potato famine. Dennis took a passage from Liverpool to seek his fortune with the Hudson Bay Trading Company, while Jeremiah came to the East End and founded Donovan Bros, still run by the family today.
Images copyright © Doreen Fletcher
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