Ewan Walton
Ewan’s interest in drawing was evident from an early age. Having art in the family helped, as did living next door to Teignmouth artists Arthur and Beryl Ganderton, from whom Ewan received some very instructive lessons. Being shown the basics of perspective was a ‘lightbulb moment’. He frequently explored the use of these rudimentary techniques throughout GCSE and A Level art at Torquay Boys’ Grammar School. Ewan gained his next art-related qualification twenty-three years later in August 2020, when his portfolio was accepted by the Society of Architectural Illustrators.
This membership perhaps led to his commission to create the architectural drawings and front cover for a recently published book, Noticing Newton Abbot. Edited by Tess Walker, this investigates the rich social history behind the town’s buildings. Work is now underway on a follow-up book.
A previous endorsement of Ewan’s draughtsmanship came in November 2017, when, after a cycling holiday in Cuba, his drawing ‘Havana’ won Best Work on Paper at the South West Academy’s annual open exhibition.
Ewan has always been influenced by the work of a wide range of artists, including M C Escher, H R Giger, Laurie Lipton, John Constable and W and F J Widgery to name but a few. This variety is reflected in his work and the projects he gets involved in. Ewan has always said he would like to do a book, a pub sign and a record cover. Although the record cover job has yet to materialise, he was commissioned in 2018 to paint a new pub sign and an 8'x4' piece of art for The Old Church House Inn, Torbryan. This hugely enjoyable project combined large-scale draughtsmanship and oil painting. Ewan has no training in signwriting, he just viewed it as a ‘big painting’ – an approach he successfully adopted for creating theatre backdrops while studying at the University of St Andrews.
Ewan usually paints on ‘normal size’ canvases and boards, having developed his oil painting skills. He concentrates mainly on landscapes and loves to paint the South Devon countryside – with Dartmoor being a particular favourite. He took part in the Moor Otters sculpture trail to raise funds for Dartmoor conservation projects. He also recently painted a second otter (which features over twenty postcard-sized landscape paintings) for another trail due to take place on Dartmoor in 2021. This design caught the eye of the main sponsor, South West Water, and will be on show to the public at Burrator Reservoir.
So, what of the future? Ewan is delivering workshops and making short videos for schools in connection with Noticing Newton Abbot. He’s also providing sketching workshops and demonstrations at The Old Church House Inn, The Italian Garden at Great Ambrook near Ipplepen, and at various local art groups and societies.
Ewan Walton
Ewan’s interest in drawing was evident from an early age. Having art in the family helped, as did living next door to Teignmouth artists Arthur and Beryl Ganderton, from whom Ewan received some very instructive lessons. Being shown the basics of perspective was a ‘lightbulb moment’. He frequently explored the use of these rudimentary techniques throughout GCSE and A Level art at Torquay Boys’ Grammar School. Ewan gained his next art-related qualification twenty-three years later in August 2020, when his portfolio was accepted by the Society of Architectural Illustrators.
This membership perhaps led to his commission to create the architectural drawings and front cover for a recently published book, Noticing Newton Abbot. Edited by Tess Walker, this investigates the rich social history behind the town’s buildings. Work is now underway on a follow-up book.
A previous endorsement of Ewan’s draughtsmanship came in November 2017, when, after a cycling holiday in Cuba, his drawing ‘Havana’ won Best Work on Paper at the South West Academy’s annual open exhibition.
Ewan has always been influenced by the work of a wide range of artists, including M C Escher, H R Giger, Laurie Lipton, John Constable and W and F J Widgery to name but a few. This variety is reflected in his work and the projects he gets involved in. Ewan has always said he would like to do a book, a pub sign and a record cover. Although the record cover job has yet to materialise, he was commissioned in 2018 to paint a new pub sign and an 8'x4' piece of art for The Old Church House Inn, Torbryan. This hugely enjoyable project combined large-scale draughtsmanship and oil painting. Ewan has no training in signwriting, he just viewed it as a ‘big painting’ – an approach he successfully adopted for creating theatre backdrops while studying at the University of St Andrews.
Ewan usually paints on ‘normal size’ canvases and boards, having developed his oil painting skills. He concentrates mainly on landscapes and loves to paint the South Devon countryside – with Dartmoor being a particular favourite. He took part in the Moor Otters sculpture trail to raise funds for Dartmoor conservation projects. He also recently painted a second otter (which features over twenty postcard-sized landscape paintings) for another trail due to take place on Dartmoor in 2021. This design caught the eye of the main sponsor, South West Water, and will be on show to the public at Burrator Reservoir.
So, what of the future? Ewan is delivering workshops and making short videos for schools in connection with Noticing Newton Abbot. He’s also providing sketching workshops and demonstrations at The Old Church House Inn, The Italian Garden at Great Ambrook near Ipplepen, and at various local art groups and societies.
