David J. Curtis (1948- ) is an English painter adept both in watercolor and oil. His background is unusual in that he led an engineering team at Hawker-Siddeley till 1988 when he began painting full-time. (Another engineer-artist that comes to mind is R.G. Smith, who painted aviation scenes with impressive atmospheric environments.) Curtis' Web site is here, and the Royal Institute of Oil Painters page dealing with him is here.

A good many works by Curtis are of the contre-jour kind, where the light source (the sun, in Curtis' images) is behind the subject. Normally, artists have the light source behind the painter or towards one side or another, illuminating the subject directly or from an angle. James Gurney discusses contre-jour painting here.

Needless to say, to be an effective contre-jour painter, one must have a very good color sense. This Curtis has. He also has a feeling for making strong, interesting compositions.

Gallery

[Image]Moorings on the Chesterfield Canal

[Image]Fine Autumn Day, Clayworth Wharf

[Image]Mooring at Hayton-Chesterfield Canal

[Image]Pembrokeshire Sea Cliffs, Port St. Justinian

[Image]Rocky Cove, Lleyn Peninsula

[Image]Vintage Car Workshop