“With my art, and especially these latest works, it’s about awareness – an awareness of what beauty is around us and the damage we are doing. It’s making sure that the next generation knows about how to conserve nature and prevent further damage from climate change.”
James Tomlinson is an artist, photographer, activist and keen birdwatcher living and working in Rye, East Sussex.
From early childhood, James was fascinated by anything that flew. As a child he explored and enacted battles in the woods and it was there that he fell in love with nature and saw his first treecreeper - whilst pretending to be a soldier and holding the fort (a fallen oak).
“The idea of ‘Locals’ came from my love of birds and of Rye Harbour Nature. This exhibition reflects where I am in my life at present. I’m at the Nature Reserve every day; I do a circuit and count the bird numbers and witness the ever-changing landscape of our beautiful reserve. During lockdown, I began to sketch the birds at the reserve and was moved to paint their beauty and individuality. My new work is a conscious move away from my previous exhibition where I used elements of graffiti -perhaps it is because I have recently been inspired by the Scottish Colourists with their finer brush strokes and colour.”
“With my art, and especially these latest works, it’s about awareness – an awareness of what beauty is around us and the damage we are doing. It’s making sure that the next generation knows about how to conserve nature and prevent further damage from climate change.”
James is an avid supporter of the Friends of Rye Harbour Nature Reserve. He championed the new Discovery Centre and helped raise funds for its development through volunteering, guided and sponsored walks. You can catch James down at the reserve every day, where he is also a Guide in the Hide.
20% of proceeds from sales of James’ paintings will go towards helping to buy equipment for the Education Department at Rye Harbour Discovery Centre.