Few people would dispute that David Tress has been one of Britain's most significant landscape painters over the last forty-five year, as well as being one of Wales's best known artists. His roots lie in the great tradition of English watercolour painting, in which heightened appreciation of atmospheric perspective, underpinned with authoritative draftsmanship, a naturalistic palette and gifted mark-making are all indispensible attributes for a top artist.
David has all these gifts but further has moved the genre of landscape painting on with a unique style of working in mixed media on heavy gauge watercolour paper but using mixed media, including pastel and acrylic. His approach has been very phsyical, almost akin to New York style action painting.
Tress has been exhibiting strongly since the 1980's and has been the sole feature of three Travelling Exhibitions, firstly within Wales in 1997, then Wales again but also including England's Midlands Arts Centre, Birmingham and the Guildhall Art Gallery, London between 2003 and 2005. And then, his exhibition, Chasing Light Sublime, toured throughout the UK starting at MOMA Wales and taking in significant locations including Keswick Museum and Art Gallery, Worcester Art Gallery and the the Maclaurin Galleries, Ayr, from 2008 to 2011.
His work features in many Public Collections including the Glynn Vivian Art Gallery, Wales, The Guildhall Art Gallery, London and Pallant House Gallery, Chichester to name a few. In 2014, David Tress was commission by King Charles (when Prince of Wales) to paint a picture of LLwynywremod, the King's house in Wales.
It came as a surprise to many when David stopped painting, permanently, in 2023. When I asked him about his decision, he said, 'I am very happy with what I have done, and quite proud of the body of work that I have created, but I have nothing to add.'
Now that David Tress has stopped painting, the artworks in this exhibition are amongst the last available by this distinguished, authoritative and significant British landscape artist.
John Davies, May 2025
