Richard writes – Over the last 15 years or so I’ve painted the Hooe Lake hulks at least six times. The first time I worked there, two boats were beached next to each other, but in recent years there has been only one, slowly decaying away. I’m fascinated by the process of change in wooden boats. I enjoy working on images of big wooden boats during construction (for example the series I’m doing now on Will Stirling’s ‘Integrity’ he’s building at Bere Ferrers) with bright new timber. Classic wooden boats still in use are regular subjects for me, but then I love to work on them at the other end of their lives – such as those at Hooe Lake. I see them both as magnificent pieces of sculpture (with superb shapes and texture) as well as being like beached whale skeletons. I’m fascinated by these hulks as pieces of sculpture and return to them regularly as they decay further – meanwhile my images of them become more and more abstract. I work outside on the spot and then complete the paintings in the studio. The medium is Indian ink, with watercolour or acrylic, and size of all of them is c 70 x 50 cms.
Richard, a sailor with a special interest in classic boats, responds to a whole range of subjects which fascinate him, from boats, bridges, reflections and shadows to yellow road markings, allotments, gates, topiary and interesting buildings which aren’t going to be demolished but which just speak to us in a unique way.
Some of Richards paintings also inspired a recent post on this website about the hooe lake hulks
More pictures can be seen on the Richard Allman website http://www.richardallman.co.uk/
Delighted to see Richard Allman’s work on the hulks. He is a talented artist. For many years I was a working colleage of Richard when he worked in adult education. Little did we realise at the time how prolific his artistic output was. It seems that he had to retire to reach his full potential. I hope he continues with his distinctive work.