Across Time - The Art of Brian Nolan
‘In the continuous cycle of the seasons, each second is new and the whole world is in some way different from what it was before, or will ever be again. Though the rotation of the seasons is predictable each in turn still contains surprises for the investigative eye. The same pulse that keeps the universe in motion also energises, year by year, every aspect of the landscape.
I feel privileged to live where I do at this point in time. And whenever I paint, though often I risk insect bites in summer and frostbite in winter, I feel privileged to stand where I stand from interest and see what I see, and am content to hold my palette and brush as long as possible or necessary to finish a work. I feel privileged to fill my borrowed space.
Though I may tread familiar paths a hundred times, each excursion becomes a different experience.”
Brian Nolan
Brian Nolan (1931 - 2019) was an artist who sought to portray the essence of where he lived; initially the streets of Manchester, where he grew up, but also the landscape of the Dark Peak and the area around New Mills and Hayfield, where he made his home. Inspired by change and continuity in the natural and human world, the cycle of seasons and days, growth and renewal, Nolan often painted outdoors, observing and capturing city streets and landscapes in a particular moment in time.
Solo exhibitions were held through his career, including shows at Salford Museum and Art Gallery, Buxton Museum and Art Gallery, and two exhibitions in Germany. He also contributed work to a wide range of other exhibitions, including the summer exhibitions at the Royal Academy, and became a member of Manchester Academy of Fine Arts in 1988.
Nolan had an enduring fascination with watercolour painting and enthusiastically shared his knowledge and techniques through a series of articles for The Artist and Leisure Painter magazines. He also worked in oils and pastels, however, and completed etchings. Still life pictures and portraits are included in his range, as well as a small number of abstract pictures.
The Brian Nolan Art Trust, a registered charity, looks after Nolan’s work since his death in 2019. The trust aims to establish and maintain a major collection of his art, exhibit it widely and promote watercolour painting. A retrospective exhibition was held at Buxton Museum and Art Gallery in 2021, followed by exhibitions in Salisbury and Nottingham in 2023 and participation in Derbyshire Open Arts, annually, from 2022.
