Strong lines — an interview with ken strong

Ken Strong's affinity for the Australian landscape has kept him painting it for three decades. I interview Ken, to discover the roots of his etheral impressionist style and what the future of his paintings looks like.

By: Sarah Hinder

For as long as he can remember, Ken Strong has held a pencil or a brush in his hand. He’s the kind of artist who, after three decades of painting landscapes, never tires of drawing inspiration from his surrounds. Through his art, he seeks to recreate a sense of place and incite a deep, reflective response from his audience. It’s the “mystical element” and transformative power of art that drives the Brisbane-born painter to continue putting oil to canvas. “I’m always looking for a greater impact of expression,” says Strong, whose works are revered both locally and internationally. “Art, for me, is incredibly exciting. It’s a form of expression that tends to follow the contours of my subconscious rather than an analytical process.”

Over the course of his 35-year career, Strong has travelled extensively throughout Australia, Europe and the US, developing a predilection for landscapes oriented around water very early on, which he attributes to a period of his childhood spent on the New South Wales Central Coast. “The whole focus there was around boats and water. I really fell in love with that, and it’s just continued,” he says. 

“In the last 15 to 18 months I’ve had a real focus on Sydney Harbour and all the little nooks and crannies that occur around that part of the world — and it’s truly delightful. The focus on boats and water, which has always been a love of mine, is also why I love Sydney Harbour so much.”

Painting from a young age, Strong says he was influenced by the Australian Impressionists of the 1800s who, in turn, took their cues from the French Impressionist movement. Since his first solo exhibition in 1988, Strong’s art has undergone a distinctive transformation. “I still have Impressionist overtones, but I tend to look at abstractions within the work. I like to have some degree of representation within my paintings, and I like to use abstraction within the remaining area around my subject, to reinforce my subject and to support that composition.”

Strong usually has around six paintings underway at any given time, and aims to start a new work at least every second day. “When I have so many paintings going on at one time, I can see things that I can’t when just attempting to analyse one painting for hours,” he explains. “It really has to come from more of a spontaneous reaction to what I pick up when I turn around and look at an easel on the far side of the studio.” 

More than the reward of spontaneity, Strong says it’s the sheer enjoyment and the possibility to evoke this same feeling in others that motivates him to create. “Occasionally when painting, I really touch on something that gets me quite excited about it — it isn’t tangible. I think it’s that sort of mystical element within art which is not all that quantifiable that drives me to do it.”

While his landscapes are characterised by instinctive, bold strokes, Strong’s approach to his subjects is more subtle in many cases. “Whether it’s a boat, a structure or a small figure, it brings your focus into certain parts of the work and generates questions. Having questions coming out of a work — as well as a visual appreciation — creates the overall interest in what is being expressed,” he explains. Rather than focusing on subjects from a composition point of view, Strong is more concerned with human intervention — the subject’s impact on the landscape. “It links the subject back to man’s influence, whether it’s good or bad.” 

Like most artists who recognise perfection is near impossible and entirely subjective, Strong is always striving for growth and improvement.    
“The perfect composition, I think, is something that is momentarily recognised.  If I can capture this even for a moment, it’s really satisfying. 
The problem is, I’m always looking for improvement, which usually results in changes. With this in mind, in reality, I don’t believe there is a perfect composition, but it is always a goal to aspire to.”

To date, Strong has participated in 59 exhibitions including 28 solos, with works currently on display at Newcastle’s Cooks Hill Galleries. Most recently, he’s been experimenting with light and shadow to hone his skill. “I’ve been looking at the use and the accentuation of light to reinforce the focus on my subjects within the composition. That particular characteristic I’m trying to push to another level with the works I’m doing for Cooks Hill,” he says, referring to one of Australia’s leading commercial art galleries. 

Strong is also working towards mastering larger-scale works. “The impact of the larger works can be quite dramatic. The physical size of it gives you a lot more opportunity to be able to express impact, and express the sorts of things that I’m developing with the use of light to achieve a more powerful result,” he explains, before a pause and a chuckle. “In two years’ time, ask me the same question and I’ll probably say I’m doing something completely different!” 

Visit cookshillgalleries.com.au to view more artwork by Ken Strong.

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this article first appeared in true blue magazine, june/july 2018.