(selected by Steven McKenzie)
Tracking, 2004
Esther Tyson is a painter whose work responds to the natural world and reflects the rich variety of subjects she finds there. Producing paintings and drawings directly from life, Tyson seeks to capture the essence of her subject matter, responding to the smell, sights and sounds of each environment. She states 'I am apart from nature - a mere observer, but this is my re-connection - my rediscovery of it' (Esther Tyson, 2006).
Tyson undertook two recent research projects, travelling to Slovakia in 2004 and to Aride Island in the Seychelles in 2005. Working within the immediate surroundings of these new environments, Tyson captures the essence of each place, focusing on the local wildlife.
Track, Sign, Glimpse - WOLF!
Whilst studying at the Royal College of Art in 2004, Tyson was struggling with the identity of her work. She took to spending large amounts of time painting and drawing in and around Epping Forest as a means of escape from the city. A chance encounter with an article in Mammal Society magazine introduced Tyson to the work of the Slovakia Wildlife Society and a man named Robin Rigg who had been living and working in Slovakia for six years. The Slovak Wildlife initiative is based on the conservation of Carpathian wildlife, focusing on the long-term survival of endangered and vulnerable species such as the wolf, bear, lynx and chamois. Tyson states 'The article captured my imagination! Britain has a significant number of species but the wolf, bear and lynx have long been forgotten by many' (Artist's statement, 2005.)
Tyson was awarded a travel grant by the RCA to spend a period of time in the village of Pribylina, Slovakia and participate in the research carried out by Robin Rigg.
Extract from the artists journal:
'Snow has been falling constantly so the going was tough, walking in Robin's footprints helped. Must have walked for miles when we came across pine martin tracks - then wolf! Fresh too, a small amount of snowfall in the pads but today's. We followed the tracks for some time, taking us along the red boundary route parallel with the National Park. Ahead of us a small fir tree in the centre of our path - to my surprise the wolf track became two ...two wolves using the same track, one in the others paw prints! Like me, saving energy...
An overwhelming awareness of the unknown. We had in fact been tracking not one lone wolf but a pack of five. These five took us away from the pathway, through marked territories, dense forest, across streams - confusion ensued. Tracks moving back, fore, backtracking after only a short distance. Red deer on the move, flushed from their resting place high on a ledge overlooking the valley - too slow - lost. Out into a meadow we picked up a trail of two of the five. Movement from the left, we are running - I drop to my knees at the boundary line with a clear view beneath the branches - WOLF - he stopped, looked at us and was gone...' (Esther Tyson, journal extract, 2004).
Tyson describes being asked why there is 'no wolf' in her paintings. The simple answer is that 'There is'; every painting made for this project is about the wolf. The images capture the presence of the elusive creature, they respond to its territory and follow its tracks. Tyson states ' The knowledge I have gained through following its tracks, its movement, its speed, its ambush and kill. These elements are to me 'the Wolf'. My painting is a part of this experience'. (Artist's statement 2005).
The Seychelles Magpie Robin - Copsychus Secellarum
For a period of three months in 2005, Tyson joined a small research team on the island of Aride in the Seychelles. Here she observed and documented the daily behaviour of the Seychelles Magpie Robin. Tyson states 'my first surprise was this bird is the size of a blackbird! The second was its intriguing character' (Artist's statement 2005).
I.D. rings and territory one birds
Orange blue - adult female
Zed zed - adult male
White red - young adult
Orange orange - juvenile
Green green fledgling
Orange brown - fledgling
I.D rings and territory two birds
Yellow yellow - adult female
Sky blue sky blue - adult female
Orange green - juvenile
Extract from artist's journal:
'blue /orange, white /red, zed /zed, shocking pink /white, orange /orange are all in the trees around me. Suddenly a display posture? Behind me yellow /yellow, sky-blue /sky-blue have arrived. blue/ orange is strait down to the ground and challenges yellow / yellow. She meets the challenge and the two birds come face to face - 12 inches apart. both bodies thrust forward, slim, stretched, sleek with wings and white wing patches contorted to a new angle. blue/ orange sings at yellow / yellow who in turn throws her voice back. yellow / yellow is backed up by sky-blue /sky-blue, he also reacts in the same stance then puffs out like a ball as blue /orange posse are down to the ground. orange/orange to the middle, white /red holding the rear, with shocking pink / white and zed /zed they forma strong line behind. Blue /orange inches forward. yellow /yellow has given ground?! Not fully, she retreats 6 paces then turns. blue /orange has made a significant stand, the realisation is all too much for territory two. sky-blue /sky-blue flies into the five strong group, they disperse. Blue /orange, z/z, white /red, shocking pink /white, orange /orange leave. Yellow /yellow and sky /blue /sky-blue leave. I leave
This was the first and only time in three months on Aride Island, that yellow /yellow showed any hesitation at the boundary lines of her territory' (Esther Tyson, journal extract, 2005).
Biography
Born in 1973, Esther Tyson was brought up in a small town at the edge of the Lake District, Cumbria. She studied at Carlisle College of Art and Design, Carmarthenshire College of Technology and Art and then London's Royal College of Art. She has exhibited widely in the UK and was short listed for the prestigious Hunting Art Prize (2005) and for Welsh Artist of the Year (2005/2006). She has exhibited with the Mall Galleries (1999 - 2005) where she was Associate and Bursary winner 2000 and was elected a full member in 2004. She currently exhibits with The Roman Black Gallery and lives and works in Carmarthenshire, South Wales.
