Stephen Bradbury (artist)
Encyclopedia
Stephen Bradbury is an illustrator and painter.
, Manchester
, England, in 1954. The eldest of three sons to William and Doreen Bradbury. The family moved from Ardwick
to Marple
, Cheshire
in 1962. This was mainly due to Manchester Corporation's policy of demolishing tenement blocks and the old terraced housing in Ardwick and other areas of Manchester. Whole communities were moved into new housing estates, in, and around Cheshire. After attending Marple
Hall Grammar School(1966–72), where he studied art under the tutelage of Keith Stephens and the renowned potter and author, Harold Powell, who wrote many books encouraging people to take up pottery,such as Beginners Book of Pottery, Blandford Press (1963), he went on to do a foundation course in art at Bolton
College of Art (1972–73), winning the Robert Fairthurst Prize, before finally going on to do a degree in Textile Design at Loughborough
College of Art in 1974. After leaving college, the artist moved back to the northwest of England and lived in the High Peak
of Derbyshire
.
It was on his journey from his home in Cheshire, as a student to Bolton College of Art everyday that initially brought alive his interest in illustration and detailed paintings.After getting off the train at Manchester Piccadilly, he would cross town to get the train from Manchester Victoria to Bolton. Often though, on route he would call into Manchester Art Gallery
and look at the extensive collection of Pre-Raphaelite paintings. This interest would show itself in several book covers later on. The King Making by Helen Hollick, Mandarin Books and The Mists of Avalon by Marion Zimmer Bradley
, Penguin Books, being good examples. To this day, Bradbury cites Autumn Leaves
, 1856, by Sir John Everett Millais, in Manchester Art Gallery
as one of his all time favourite paintings.
In 1973, Stephen Bradbury married Sue Goodricke, they have three children, Rachael, Hope and Jonathon.
In 1988, the artist moved from the Peak District
to Cornwall
, where he still resides.
In 1982 he was commissioned by art director, Gary Day Ellison at Pan Books to illustrate his first book cover The Many Coloured Land
by Sci-Fi writer, Julian May
. This was book one of The Pliocene Exile Series. Other books in the series being, The Golden Torc, The Non-born King and The Adversary. Intervention
, by Julian May
. 1.5 million copies sold. This was followed by the same author's The Galactic Milieu Trilogy Jack The Bodiless, Diamond Mask and Magnificat
, where the author amazingly looped the story back to the start of the first book. Bradbury managed to pull off the same trick with the cover artwork too. The success of the first series of books and the distinctive artwork used on them helped catapult Bradbury's career in illustration, and in 1982, he was awarded the Pan Books, Artist of the Year award. Later on he illustrated the covers for Julian May's Rampant Worlds Series. Perseus Spur, Orion's Arm
and Sagitarius Whorl for Harper Collins.
For the next twenty years, Bradbury illustrated over 300 book covers, for all the major publishers in the U.K. and around the globe. Authors included, Arthur C Clarke, Sheri S Tepper, Alan Dean Foster
, Barbara Hambly
, Marion Zimmer Bradley
, Rosamunde Pilcher
, Barbara Erskine
. Joanna Trollope
, and many more. Mainly commissioned for his illustration and design work, his work has also appeared in galleries in the U.K. Most of his work in illustration was painted in gouache
. His Garden Series paintings, became very popular and well sought after, until he pulled the plug on them. An example of this style can be seen on The Ice House
by Minette Walters
, Pan Books.1993. The Dodos lead the Way, 1991, sold by the Portal Gallery in London, (but available to see on sites on the web), another example in the series which makes use of a quirky garden setting, as a means to put over a serious topic such as extinction.
In 1996, Paper Tiger Books
published, Reflections - The Art of Stephen Bradbury. Written by David J. Howe
, The book contained well over a 150 examples of his book cover illustrations and private artwork and gave an exclusive look into his working methods and motivations. This was to be one of the great ironies of his career, in being that, Paper Tiger was the first publisher he approached at the start of his career, and they duly rejected him outright. Years later, he got a phone call from them, asking whether they could do a book about him.
Around 2000, at the height of his fame as an illustrator, Bradbury decided to give up doing commissioned work and decided to become a painter instead, painting large canvases in oils, He stated that in the twenty odd years or so in publishing, he could count the number of paintings , painted for himself on one hand. He wanted to express his views on the world, and, paint from the heart.
As part of this process, Bradbury took a degree in The History of Modern Art
, at Falmouth College of Art. He had been a lecturer in illustration at this college, and felt strange at returning as a student. After achieving a degree in the History of Modern Art, he started on a major series of paintings, which was to become, The Facets Project.
Facets, started out as Bradbury looking around at his environment, studio and the people around him, but soon became a profound look at middle-age and the problems incurred by people, mainly women in their lives and relationships. There are fifty canvases in the Facets Project, and the project took five years to finish. The artwork within these works, incorporates the human figure within a combination of abstract shapes, hints of landscape, and colour . As the project progressed the canvases became larger and larger. There are still elements of Bradbury's renowned tight brushwork, but a free flowing style of brushwork and use of colour also pervades. Described as reclusive, Bradbury, in effect took time out from the media and public display of his work to make the transition from illustration to painting. Citing, Willem de Kooning
as an example of an artist who broke free from commercial art to become a painter in his own right. Life drawing in recent years has become a key factor in his work and the use of models in dramatic poses has become a key element in his paintings. The paintings in this series were all painted in Oil paint
.
Facets, was followed by Bradbury's next project, Voids, a series of paintings that took, as its starting point the relationship between the painter and his father William Bradbury, and looked at the ways in which each of our lives are governed by the environment we grow up in and the spaces in our lives that are filled with life choices and relationships etc. They also included elements of his longstanding Christian
beliefs. As with the Facets project, the paintings for Voids were painted in oils.
In recent years, Stephen Bradbury, with the help of master craftsman and church window restorer, Tony Fletcher at Porthleven Stained Glass Studio in, Porthleven
, Cornwall
has been making stained glass
panels based on his paintings.
Biography
Stephen Bradbury was born in ArdwickArdwick
Ardwick is a district of the City of Manchester, in North West England, about one mile east of Manchester City Centre.By the mid-19th century Ardwick had grown from being a village into a pleasant and wealthy suburb of Manchester, but by the end of that century it had become heavily industrialised...
, Manchester
Manchester
Manchester is a city and metropolitan borough in Greater Manchester, England. According to the Office for National Statistics, the 2010 mid-year population estimate for Manchester was 498,800. Manchester lies within one of the UK's largest metropolitan areas, the metropolitan county of Greater...
, England, in 1954. The eldest of three sons to William and Doreen Bradbury. The family moved from Ardwick
Ardwick
Ardwick is a district of the City of Manchester, in North West England, about one mile east of Manchester City Centre.By the mid-19th century Ardwick had grown from being a village into a pleasant and wealthy suburb of Manchester, but by the end of that century it had become heavily industrialised...
to Marple
Marple
Marple may refer to:As a place:* Marple, Greater Manchester* Marple Bridge, a village within the Metropolitan Borough of Stockport, in Greater Manchester, England.* Marple Township, Delaware County, Pennsylvania, in the United StatesAs a surname:...
, Cheshire
Cheshire
Cheshire is a ceremonial county in North West England. Cheshire's county town is the city of Chester, although its largest town is Warrington. Other major towns include Widnes, Congleton, Crewe, Ellesmere Port, Runcorn, Macclesfield, Winsford, Northwich, and Wilmslow...
in 1962. This was mainly due to Manchester Corporation's policy of demolishing tenement blocks and the old terraced housing in Ardwick and other areas of Manchester. Whole communities were moved into new housing estates, in, and around Cheshire. After attending Marple
Marple
Marple may refer to:As a place:* Marple, Greater Manchester* Marple Bridge, a village within the Metropolitan Borough of Stockport, in Greater Manchester, England.* Marple Township, Delaware County, Pennsylvania, in the United StatesAs a surname:...
Hall Grammar School(1966–72), where he studied art under the tutelage of Keith Stephens and the renowned potter and author, Harold Powell, who wrote many books encouraging people to take up pottery,such as Beginners Book of Pottery, Blandford Press (1963), he went on to do a foundation course in art at Bolton
Bolton
Bolton is a town in Greater Manchester, in the North West of England. Close to the West Pennine Moors, it is north west of the city of Manchester. Bolton is surrounded by several smaller towns and villages which together form the Metropolitan Borough of Bolton, of which Bolton is the...
College of Art (1972–73), winning the Robert Fairthurst Prize, before finally going on to do a degree in Textile Design at Loughborough
Loughborough
Loughborough is a town within the Charnwood borough of Leicestershire, England. It is the seat of Charnwood Borough Council and is home to Loughborough University...
College of Art in 1974. After leaving college, the artist moved back to the northwest of England and lived in the High Peak
High Peak
High Peak is a non-metropolitan district and borough of the non-metropolitan county of Derbyshire, England. Administered from Buxton, it is mostly composed of high moorland plateau in the Dark Peak of the Peak District....
of Derbyshire
Derbyshire
Derbyshire is a county in the East Midlands of England. A substantial portion of the Peak District National Park lies within Derbyshire. The northern part of Derbyshire overlaps with the Pennines, a famous chain of hills and mountains. The county contains within its boundary of approx...
.
It was on his journey from his home in Cheshire, as a student to Bolton College of Art everyday that initially brought alive his interest in illustration and detailed paintings.After getting off the train at Manchester Piccadilly, he would cross town to get the train from Manchester Victoria to Bolton. Often though, on route he would call into Manchester Art Gallery
Manchester Art Gallery
Manchester Art Gallery is a publicly-owned art gallery in Manchester, England. It was formerly known as Manchester City Art Gallery.The gallery was opened in 1824 and today occupies three buildings, the oldest of which - designed by Sir Charles Barry - is Grade I listed and was originally home to...
and look at the extensive collection of Pre-Raphaelite paintings. This interest would show itself in several book covers later on. The King Making by Helen Hollick, Mandarin Books and The Mists of Avalon by Marion Zimmer Bradley
Marion Zimmer Bradley
Marion Eleanor Zimmer Bradley was an American author of fantasy novels such as The Mists of Avalon and the Darkover series. Many critics have noted a feminist perspective in her writing. Her first child, David R...
, Penguin Books, being good examples. To this day, Bradbury cites Autumn Leaves
Autumn Leaves
Autumn Leaves may refer to:* Autumn leaf color, a phenomenon affecting deciduous plants* Autumn Leaves , a 1956 film directed by Robert Aldrich* Autumn Leaves , an 1856 painting by John Everett Millais...
, 1856, by Sir John Everett Millais, in Manchester Art Gallery
Manchester Art Gallery
Manchester Art Gallery is a publicly-owned art gallery in Manchester, England. It was formerly known as Manchester City Art Gallery.The gallery was opened in 1824 and today occupies three buildings, the oldest of which - designed by Sir Charles Barry - is Grade I listed and was originally home to...
as one of his all time favourite paintings.
In 1973, Stephen Bradbury married Sue Goodricke, they have three children, Rachael, Hope and Jonathon.
In 1988, the artist moved from the Peak District
Peak District
The Peak District is an upland area in central and northern England, lying mainly in northern Derbyshire, but also covering parts of Cheshire, Greater Manchester, Staffordshire, and South and West Yorkshire....
to Cornwall
Cornwall
Cornwall is a unitary authority and ceremonial county of England, within the United Kingdom. It is bordered to the north and west by the Celtic Sea, to the south by the English Channel, and to the east by the county of Devon, over the River Tamar. Cornwall has a population of , and covers an area of...
, where he still resides.
In 1982 he was commissioned by art director, Gary Day Ellison at Pan Books to illustrate his first book cover The Many Coloured Land
The Many Coloured Land
The Many-Colored Land is the first book of the Saga of Pliocene Exile by American author Julian May. It sets the series up by introducing the story of each of the characters...
by Sci-Fi writer, Julian May
Julian May
Julian May is an American science fiction, fantasy, horror, science and children's writer who also uses several literary pseudonyms, best known for her Saga of Pliocene Exile and Galactic Milieu Series books.- Background and early career :Julian May grew up in Elmwood Park, Illinois, a suburb of...
. This was book one of The Pliocene Exile Series. Other books in the series being, The Golden Torc, The Non-born King and The Adversary. Intervention
Intervention
Intervention may refer to:* Interventionism ** Humanitarian intervention, an attempt to reduce suffering within a state through armed conflict** Entente intervention in the Russian Civil War at 1918-1925** Invasion or military offensive...
, by Julian May
Julian May
Julian May is an American science fiction, fantasy, horror, science and children's writer who also uses several literary pseudonyms, best known for her Saga of Pliocene Exile and Galactic Milieu Series books.- Background and early career :Julian May grew up in Elmwood Park, Illinois, a suburb of...
. 1.5 million copies sold. This was followed by the same author's The Galactic Milieu Trilogy Jack The Bodiless, Diamond Mask and Magnificat
Magnificat
The Magnificat — also known as the Song of Mary or the Canticle of Mary — is a canticle frequently sung liturgically in Christian church services. It is one of the eight most ancient Christian hymns and perhaps the earliest Marian hymn...
, where the author amazingly looped the story back to the start of the first book. Bradbury managed to pull off the same trick with the cover artwork too. The success of the first series of books and the distinctive artwork used on them helped catapult Bradbury's career in illustration, and in 1982, he was awarded the Pan Books, Artist of the Year award. Later on he illustrated the covers for Julian May's Rampant Worlds Series. Perseus Spur, Orion's Arm
Orion's Arm
Orion's Arm, is a multi-authored online science fiction world-building project, first established in 2000 by M. Alan Kazlev, Donna Malcolm Hirsekorn, Bernd Helfert and Anders Sandberg and further co-authored by many people since...
and Sagitarius Whorl for Harper Collins.
For the next twenty years, Bradbury illustrated over 300 book covers, for all the major publishers in the U.K. and around the globe. Authors included, Arthur C Clarke, Sheri S Tepper, Alan Dean Foster
Alan Dean Foster
Alan Dean Foster is an American author of fantasy and science fiction. He currently resides in Prescott, Arizona, with his wife, and is also known for his novelizations of film scripts...
, Barbara Hambly
Barbara Hambly
Barbara Hambly is an award-winning and prolific American novelist and screenwriter within the genres of fantasy, science fiction, mystery, and historical fiction...
, Marion Zimmer Bradley
Marion Zimmer Bradley
Marion Eleanor Zimmer Bradley was an American author of fantasy novels such as The Mists of Avalon and the Darkover series. Many critics have noted a feminist perspective in her writing. Her first child, David R...
, Rosamunde Pilcher
Rosamunde Pilcher
Rosamunde Pilcher OBE is a British author of romance novels and mainstream women's fiction. Early in her career she was also published under the pen name Jane Fraser. Pilcher retired from writing in 2000.-Early years:...
, Barbara Erskine
Barbara Erskine
Barbara Erskine is an English novelist.-Biography:Erskine owns homes in Hereford and Colchester, England. Erskine's first novel was published in 1986...
. Joanna Trollope
Joanna Trollope
Joanna Trollope OBE , is an English novelist.-Life:Joanna Trollope was educated at Reigate County School for Girls followed by St Hugh's College, Oxford. From 1965 to 1967, she worked at the Foreign Office...
, and many more. Mainly commissioned for his illustration and design work, his work has also appeared in galleries in the U.K. Most of his work in illustration was painted in gouache
Gouache
Gouache[p], also spelled guache, the name of which derives from the Italian guazzo, water paint, splash or bodycolor is a type of paint consisting of pigment suspended in water. A binding agent, usually gum arabic, is also present, just as in watercolor...
. His Garden Series paintings, became very popular and well sought after, until he pulled the plug on them. An example of this style can be seen on The Ice House
The Ice House
The Ice House Comedy Club is located at 24 Mentor Avenue in Pasadena, California. Opened in 1960 when folk music was in its prime, The Ice House was one of America's top folk clubs with acts coming from around the country to perform. In the 1970s the club's emphasis switched to comedy, providing...
by Minette Walters
Minette Walters
Minette Walters is an English crime writer.- Life and work :After her birth in Bishop’s Stortford to a serving army officer, Capt Samuel Jebb and his wife Colleen, the first 10 years of Minette’s life were spent moving between army bases in the north and south of England...
, Pan Books.1993. The Dodos lead the Way, 1991, sold by the Portal Gallery in London, (but available to see on sites on the web), another example in the series which makes use of a quirky garden setting, as a means to put over a serious topic such as extinction.
In 1996, Paper Tiger Books
Paper Tiger Books
Paper Tiger is a publishing house started in 1976 by Martyn and Roger Dean, on the back of their success at publishing Dean's Views graphic album under sister imprint Dragon's Dream...
published, Reflections - The Art of Stephen Bradbury. Written by David J. Howe
David J. Howe
David J. Howe is a British writer, journalist, publisher, and media historian.-Biography:David Howe was born in 1961 and established himself as an authoritative media historian through writing articles for fanzines and other publications...
, The book contained well over a 150 examples of his book cover illustrations and private artwork and gave an exclusive look into his working methods and motivations. This was to be one of the great ironies of his career, in being that, Paper Tiger was the first publisher he approached at the start of his career, and they duly rejected him outright. Years later, he got a phone call from them, asking whether they could do a book about him.
Around 2000, at the height of his fame as an illustrator, Bradbury decided to give up doing commissioned work and decided to become a painter instead, painting large canvases in oils, He stated that in the twenty odd years or so in publishing, he could count the number of paintings , painted for himself on one hand. He wanted to express his views on the world, and, paint from the heart.
As part of this process, Bradbury took a degree in The History of Modern Art
Modern art
Modern art includes artistic works produced during the period extending roughly from the 1860s to the 1970s, and denotes the style and philosophy of the art produced during that era. The term is usually associated with art in which the traditions of the past have been thrown aside in a spirit of...
, at Falmouth College of Art. He had been a lecturer in illustration at this college, and felt strange at returning as a student. After achieving a degree in the History of Modern Art, he started on a major series of paintings, which was to become, The Facets Project.
Facets, started out as Bradbury looking around at his environment, studio and the people around him, but soon became a profound look at middle-age and the problems incurred by people, mainly women in their lives and relationships. There are fifty canvases in the Facets Project, and the project took five years to finish. The artwork within these works, incorporates the human figure within a combination of abstract shapes, hints of landscape, and colour . As the project progressed the canvases became larger and larger. There are still elements of Bradbury's renowned tight brushwork, but a free flowing style of brushwork and use of colour also pervades. Described as reclusive, Bradbury, in effect took time out from the media and public display of his work to make the transition from illustration to painting. Citing, Willem de Kooning
Willem de Kooning
Willem de Kooning was a Dutch American abstract expressionist artist who was born in Rotterdam, the Netherlands....
as an example of an artist who broke free from commercial art to become a painter in his own right. Life drawing in recent years has become a key factor in his work and the use of models in dramatic poses has become a key element in his paintings. The paintings in this series were all painted in Oil paint
Oil paint
Oil paint is a type of slow-drying paint that consists of particles of pigment suspended in a drying oil, commonly linseed oil. The viscosity of the paint may be modified by the addition of a solvent such as turpentine or white spirit, and varnish may be added to increase the glossiness of the...
.
Facets, was followed by Bradbury's next project, Voids, a series of paintings that took, as its starting point the relationship between the painter and his father William Bradbury, and looked at the ways in which each of our lives are governed by the environment we grow up in and the spaces in our lives that are filled with life choices and relationships etc. They also included elements of his longstanding Christian
Christian
A Christian is a person who adheres to Christianity, an Abrahamic, monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus of Nazareth as recorded in the Canonical gospels and the letters of the New Testament...
beliefs. As with the Facets project, the paintings for Voids were painted in oils.
In recent years, Stephen Bradbury, with the help of master craftsman and church window restorer, Tony Fletcher at Porthleven Stained Glass Studio in, Porthleven
Porthleven
Porthleven is a town, civil parish and fishing port in Cornwall, United Kingdom, near Helston. It is the most southerly port on the island of Great Britain and was originally developed as a harbour of refuge, when this part of the Cornish coastline was recognised as a black spot for wrecks in days...
, Cornwall
Cornwall
Cornwall is a unitary authority and ceremonial county of England, within the United Kingdom. It is bordered to the north and west by the Celtic Sea, to the south by the English Channel, and to the east by the county of Devon, over the River Tamar. Cornwall has a population of , and covers an area of...
has been making stained glass
Stained glass
The term stained glass can refer to coloured glass as a material or to works produced from it. Throughout its thousand-year history, the term has been applied almost exclusively to the windows of churches and other significant buildings...
panels based on his paintings.