Tony Northover with “Down By the River” 1 & 2

WELCOME TO THE WATERCOLOUR WORLD OF A J (TONY) NORTHOVER

IT HAS BEEN AROUND 11 YEARS SINCE TONY  FIRST PICKED UP A PENCIL OR PAINTBRUSH AND SERIOUSLY TRIED TO DO SOMETHING ARTISTIC WITH EITHER OF THEM, AND WITH NO FORMAL TRAINING, OR STUDY IN THE ARTS,

HIS STORY IS A RATHER UNCONVENTIONAL ONE.

TONYS’ VERY ARTISTIC MOTHER OFTEN TOLD HIM , AS A CHILD GROWING UP,  THAT HE COULD DRAW VERY WELL AND THAT HE  SHOULD PURSUE THIS TALENT, AND OF COURSE THIS ADVICE WAS COMPLETELY IGNORED!

IN 1998, AT THE AGE OF 42, TONY’S ARTISTIC JOURNEY BEGAN IN A SMALL WARRANDYTE GALLERY, WHICH UNFORTUNATELY CLOSED JUST 12 MONTHS LATER, BUT BY NOW TONY WAS ‘HOOKED’ AND WAS FURTHER ENCOURAGED BY THE ‘HIGHLY COMMENDED’ AWARD HE HAD JUST RECEIVED  IN A LOCAL EXHIBITION.  HE VERY QUICKLY STARTED CLASSES WITH THE LOCAL WELL KNOWN ARTIST, WALTER MAGILTON.

IN HIS PURSUIT OF ADVANCING HIS SKILLS IN WATERCOLOUR AND THE MANY TECHNIQUES USED, TONY HAS BEEN TAUGHT BY, OR ATTENDED WORKSHOPS OF, SOME OF THE BETTER WATERCOLOUR ARTISTS AROUND TODAY, NAMELY DAVID TAYLOR, MALCOLM BEATTIE, ROBERT WADE, ROSS PATTERSON, AND GREG ALLEN, AND YOU MAY SEE GLIMPSES OF MANY OF THESE ARTIST’S STYLE IN TONY’S WORK.

TONY STILL WORKS FULL TIME IN THE DEMANDING CONSTRUCTION & ENGINEERING INDUSTRY AND IN FACT SPENT NEARLY FIVE YEARS OF HIS LIFE IN THE CONSTRUCTION OF THE UNIQUE FEDERATION SQUARE PROJECT., AND THIS MAY WELL EMERGE AS A PAINTING THEME FOR HIM IN THE FUTURE AS HE HAS MANY HUNDREDS OF PHOTOS TAKEN OVER THE CONSTRUCTION PERIOD.

AND SO, TONY CURRENTLY PAINTS “IN BETWEEN” HIS FULL TIME WORK COMMITMENTS , ALTHOUGH SINCE EMBARKING ON HIS ARTISTIC  JOURNEY,  HE IS BECOMING MORE AND MORE OBSESSED, AND IS PROUD TO ADMIT TO THAT!   HE WOULD LOVE NOTHING MORE THAN TO PAINT FULL TIME….

TONY SUBLECTS ARE MANY AND VARIED, AND HE HAS NO DESIRE TO SETTLE ON ANY  PARTICULAR THEME OR GENRE AT THIS STAGE ALTHOUGH HE DOES ENJOY ‘THE LANDSCAPE’ IN ALL ITS FORMS, SHAPES AND SUBJECTS, AS WELL AS BUILDINGS , MARITIME,  AND WILDLIFE THEMES.

THE PAINTINGS ON DISPLAY, PROVIDE A TASTE OF MOSTLY RECENT WORK, BUT IN PARTICULAR A VARIANCE OF SUBJECT MATTER , AND APART FROM A COUPLE OF OVERSEAS SUBJECTS  (SALISBURY CATHEDRAL, AND EILEAN DONAN CASTLE) THE SUBJECTS ARE MAINLY RECENT EXPERIENCES OR SCENERY ON TRIPS LOCALLY OR INTERSTATE.

TONY HAS NOW HELD FIVE SOLO EXHIBITIONS, AND HIS WORK HAS WON A NUMBER OF HIGH COMMENDATIONS  IN LOCAL ART SHOWS.

AJ NORTHOVER IS CURRENTLY VICE PRESIDENT OF THE WHITEHORSE ARTS ASSOCIATION AND A FULL MEMBER OF THE AUSTRALIAN GUILD OR REALIST ARTISTS (AGRA) ,

BUT ABOVE ALL, LIKES TO THINK OF HIMSELF AS A WARRANDYTE ARTIST!