THREE rather fine pictures of Ogden Water, exhibited recently in St. James’s Church, Thornton, brought the work of a largely unknown Bradford artist to much wider attention. People liked them immediately, for their gentle evocation of the popular local beauty spot, around Causeway Foot.
Mike Joyce is a living example of the long-held belief among artists that if you have got the creative gift in you, it will – and must – come out in some form or another, no matter how long it might take.
Aged 13, Mike was told by his art teacher, in his native Essex, that he was ‘useless’. The devastating dismissal still rankles with Mike, himself a retired headmaster (of Mandale Middle School and later of Clayton C of E Primary), who believes the best years of his life as an artist were wasted as a consequence.
“As a former teacher, I’m still appalled by what was said,” he reflects ruefully. “He was a figure of authority and I believed him. Teachers should always encourage their pupils’ attempts – not destroy their hopes!”
It was only after retirement that he took up his brushes again in earnest. He’d made his first major attempt in 1986 – shortly after arriving in Bradford to take up a teaching appointment – encouraged by his wife Liz, the lass from Wyke. The still life, which he painted whilst taking a night school class at Buttershaw Upper School, has pride of place in their house in Denholme Gate.
If it reveals a rich promise, unfortunately pressure of work delayed further attempts until 2016. “My job took up just about every waking hour,” he remembers. “But we more than doubled the roll at Mandale from 200 to 420, and the school had a very good reputation.”
A chance find of a book titled Learn Watercolour in a Weekend proved the spur that set him off with renewed energy. “I now know that this organic medium has a life of its own and two lifetimes wouldn’t be enough to master it but the book gave me some instant ideas and stimulated my imagination,” says Mike.
His work has been rightly described as “in the great tradition of English watercolour landscape art” and he firmly believes watercolour is the “most magical of all paint media, and it never ceases to surprise.” He pauses to catch his breath. “Whether you’re painting wet on wet or wet on dry, you never know what wonderful effects will emerge next day.”
His method is that of the traditional artist of this kind, beginning with a pencil sketch, then adding a layer of wash, starting with the sky. Other layers will add tonal depths before line work will develop finer detail and shade.
“It’s amazing the sense of calm and happiness that comes from working in this way, as watercolourists always have,” he considers, “capturing the play of light on water, say, or bright foliage against a darkening sky.”
As proof of his claims for the superiority of this medium, he speaks of the brilliance of a range of artists who have influenced him from Eric Ravilious, best known for his celebration of the South Downs, to Rowland Hilder, a hugely popular illustrator in the postwar period.
“When I was six, I fell in love with Hilder’s beautiful English landscapes that featured on the Shell calendars,” he recalls. “At the time my family were living in London and I’d never seen the countryside, but I think even back then I wanted to paint like that.”
Moving, aged eight, to Benfleet, Essex, was a revelation. “I saw the sea for the first time when we got off the train and again wanted to paint it, like Hilder.”
Ogden Water: A Haven of Tranquility
Although firmly declaring himself “an adopted Bradfordian”, he is still drawn to the eerie beauty of the Essex creeks and the mud flats in the Thames’ Estuary, around Canvey Island. “I’m probably better known as an artist down there than here,” he laughs.
The Crow Stone, Thames Estuary: Mike’s watercolour in the Essex Open Exhibition
If he is, it’s largely because of the impact of his moody evocation of the famous Crow Stone, which marks the tidal boundary of the Thames to the west of Southend. “It was the only watercolour chosen for the Essex Open Exhibition out of nearly 200 submissions and was commended by the judges.”
From the dam at Ogden Water
We admire his Yorkshire landscapes, whether the Thornton Valley snow scene that he captured from his house, his recent Ogden Water exhibits, Judy Woods – where Liz played as a girl – or farther afield on the Yorkshire coast.
Bluebells at Judy Woods, where Mike’s wife Liz played as a child
They are all peaceful, harmonious, unassuming portraits of the English landscape. No less captivating is his study of the birthplace of the Brontës in Thornton or the evocation of Haworth by moonlight – and we warm to the freer, bolder depictions of buildings, such as City Hall, in pen and wash.
Haworth by Moonlight
Other examples of his work may be found on Instagram at Mike Joyce Art.
Mike, who attends a weekly art class in Queensbury run by the acclaimed teacher and artist, Jane Gamble, is still making up for lost time. “You never stop learning,” he says, brightly. “And I am more determined than ever to bring out whatever artistic talent I have that lay dormant for so long.”