Linda Weir English, b. 1951
‘The images and colours in the paintings are about constant change and movements, springtime, sunsets and winter transformations observed in fleeting time. They are from life and this is why they are sometimes called ‘Naïve’, a rush to capture the moving changes, I am like a fisherman in this, to race the tide, to catch the boats before they leave, the sun before it sinks beyond Carnstabba hill and the fishermen go out or come in. Mostly a la prima, impasto, layered and tonal colours. I love the oil paint and the improbability of the images caught up in wheals of paint. They are alive forever in the paint and continue to live and change with the changing perception of the viewer.’
Linda was born in Manchester in 1951, and studied at Manchester Metropolitan University, attaining a foundation in Visual Studies, a BA (Hons) in Fine Art and a PGCE in Art. She went on to receive an MA in Fine Art from Nottingham Trent University.
Linda held many teaching positions between 1983 and 2003 including at the University of Nottingham and Manchester Metropolitan University. She was a member of the Manchester Academy of Fine Art and a founder member of the Manchester Artists Studio Association.
Linda won a place at Falmouth School of Art in the 1980s but was unable to take it up. Twenty-five years later, she finally arrived in West Cornwall and now lives and paints in St Ives where she produces impasto oils, all ‘en plein air’. She describes being in Cornwall as a “constant thrill” and finds it an “intensely inspiring place”.
Linda has exhibited extensively in one-woman and mixed shows across the country, most notably at the Royal Academy Summer Show.
