Gareth Parry
Gareth Parry was born in the slate quarrying town of Blaenau Ffestiniog, North Wales in 1951. After leaving school he went on to study at the Manchester College of Art in the late 1960's. Following that, he worked at a local mine for two years before starting to paint once more, embracing all that came his way, illustrating or undertaking commissions as varied as landscape, portrait and still lifes.
For ten years, he only painted en plein air, which he says was "the best training I could ever have had". He then reverted to studio work based sketches and memory, which he thinks of "as the companion of observation". His landscapes and seascapes are more about effect and mood produced by weather and natural elements than place alone, so the paintings ultimately become more abstract than figurative. Whilst he uses the traditional brush, he also uses a palette knife.
Gareth has exhibited widely and his works are in many notable private collections, as well as public, including The National Library of Wales, Coutts & Co. Bank, Gwynedd County Council and Oriel Ynys Mon. In 2007, he became a member of the Royal Cambrian Academy.
Gareth Parry has been exhibiting with Thackeray Gallery since 2007. Gareth is working towards his second solo show at Thackeray Gallery which is to be exhibited in October 2011.
