Art - Lis Lawrence and Anne de Geus

When two artists exhibit together they are generally given an area each but the first thing I notice when I step into HQ Gallery is that the works of Lis Lawrence and Anne de Geus are merged together, their pictures hanging side by side. Whilst both artists take as their subject the Sussex Downs, the effect of the arrangement is, surprisingly, to heighten the contrasts in mood and style. Lis, meeting me at the gallery, articulates the difference for me. “Anne’s work is much more lonely quiet and melancholic. Her landscapes are spacious and atmospheric. But I am much more interested in the detail. My canvases are busy and filled with life”. Their mutual styles, Lis tells me are also indicative of their contrasting personalities. “Anne is a bit of a loner. She’s happier on her own. I’m much more gregarious. I get excited by people”. For Lis the landscape is made interesting by the marks of the people that populate it. “I love the way that the landscape is affected by people’s domestic lives. For instance”, she says stopping at a painting called Marina Cottages, “I loved this one because of the detail of the purple car. I was so excited by the way it contrasted with the green of the Downs.” It is a touch which recurs in ‘The Castle at Moonlight’, where the darkness is broken up by a washing line full of brightly coloured clothes. Lis describes her painting process as a ‘childlike pleasure’, and is cynical of attempts to overanalyse her work. “It should be about a gut response. For me colour and texture give me the same satisfaction as, say, a delicious casserole.” ER