Western Morning News (Saturday)
Reflections of a lifetime of faith and hope...
Jim Whitlock is an artist with a fascination for mountains – and it shows in his work, writes Frank Ruhrmund
The celebrated British art critic, writer and reformer John Ruskin reckoned that “Mountains are the beginning and the end of all natural scenery.” It is something with which artist Jim Whitlock would surely agree. As he cheerfully admits, ever since the Coronation Year of 1953 when Sir Edmund Hillary and Tenzing Norgay conquered Mount Everest he has had a fascination with mountains, and they have often featured in his work. While he may not have the climbing skills of either of the two conquerors of Everest, he has the same hunger for adventure and relish for new and unexplored places. Only last year, immediately prior to the onset of the Covic 19 pandemic, he travelled to Nepal where he enjoyed everything from that country’s forests to its great lakes, not to mention a spot of hunting for wild tigers, before arriving at the Polkhara Mountain Lodge which was opened by Sir Edmund Hillary himself. As thrilling as all this was, the best was yet to come – a flight around the summit of Mount Everest. As he says, “Seeing this great mountain peak coming through the clouds in different lights, the rugged rock structure thrown against the snow, with the clear evidence of tracking routes and Nepalese prayer flags, brought dramatic
This great mountain peak brought dramatic life to the summit experience JIM WHITLOCK
life to the summit experience.” While travelling he sketched and painted the various aspects of the landscapes he was seeing, and he was to fly home, his head filled with images he could hardly wait to put on canvas, As it happened, Nepal went into total lockdown and Kathmandu airport was closed on the very day that he left there. A close shave indeed, since then he has been working steadily towards producing the works that make up his aptly named exhibition Summit, opening tomorrow, Sunday, September 5, in the Schoolhouse Gallery, Morvah. While hunting tigers and flying around Mount Everest may seem extraordinary, for Jim Whitlock it is only part of his story which I never tire of telling.
Born in Bristol, he took his first steps towards becoming an artist as a student at the West of England Academy and at Brighton College of Art, and then lectured for a while prior to coming to St Ives where, with fellow artists Breon O’Casey and Bryan Wynter, he helped set up the Porthmeor print workshop and studio. Currently a Canon Emeritus of Truro Cathedral, he wasn’t to know then that, as successful as he was within his burgeoning artistic career, the call of the church was to prove even more powerful. In the early 1970’s, he took the courageous step towards a major career and life change. He hung up his brushes, closed his studio door, and left St Ives for Cambridge where he read for a MA in Theology, and for the next 30 years dedicated his life to the Church, chiefly in Cornwall. He eventually became the vicar of three churches in Penzance and, before retiring because of ill health and resuming his artistic career, was honoured by being made a Canon Emeritus at Truro Cathedral.
Since then, he has gained a considerable reputation and following for his paintings, in which, as he says, “Now, as I stand back from public ministry, I set out to reflect on my lifetime experiences of faith and hope in a visual way rather than through words in the pulpit.” Essentially painterly rather than preachy, some of his colourful and dramatic canvases, plus his gouache and pastel studies, have been sold prior to the opening of his current exhibition and are now winging their way to collectors in Cornwall, Scotland, Boston, New York and, of course, London.
Happily, however, a substantial number remain and from Sunlight on Everest and Tiger Hunt to Summit with Clouds and Mountain Light, this is an unmissable exhibition. Admission is free, and Jim Whitlock’s Summit can be seen in the Schoolhouse Gallery, Morvah, 11am-5pm daily from tomorrow until Friday, September 17.