William Carney ROI RSMA

William Carney mostly paints marine subjects. He also paints townscapes and still life, especially compositions with a strong geometrical construction. Apart from art, technical drawing was his favoured subject at school. Working in graphics over many years gave me the underlying discipline needed to produce a marine painting.

Method of Working

William paints in oils. Pictures are determined by the subject and the composition so he often makes up his own canvases to odd sizes. He has a direct approach to the subject and he prefers to paint plein air, weather permitting. A photograph is taken before he starts to paint, just in case the weather changes half way through the session. William starts by sketching the composition with charcoal directly onto the canvas. He also uses charcoal to alter the composition, if necessary, whilst painting the picture. The motivation to paint for his is to ‘play with’ paint. William moves the paint around the canvas, working in compatible combinations of tints, tones and colour highlights. A combination of flat and round brushes, rags and palette knives are used to remove or add paint.

Biographical Details

1943 Born on 18 August in Stockton on Tees, Durham
1973-76 Studied BA (Hons) Art and Design, Hornsey School of Art, London
1984-96 Graphic Artist/Illustrator for the Daily Express Newspapers in Fleet Street
1996 Began painting full-time
2004 Elected a Member of the Royal Society of Marine Artists
2008 Elected an Associate Member of the Royal Institute of Oil Painters

Society Memberships

Royal Institute of Oil Painters
Scholarships, Awards, Prizes
Charles Pears Award, Royal Society of Marine Artists
Ranelagh Press Award, Royal Institute of Oil Painters

Exhibitions

Royal Institute of Oil Painters Annual Exhibition 2017
Royal Institute of Oil Painters Annual Exhibition 2016
Royal Society of Marine Artists Annual Exhibition 2016
Royal Institute of Oil Painters Annual Exhibition 2015
Royal Society of Marine Artists Annual Exhibition 2015
Royal Institute of Oil Painters Annual Exhibition 2014

Other exhibitions

Royal Institute of Oil Painters Annual Exhibition, Mall Galleries, London
Trafalgar 200 Royal Society of Marine Artists Annual Exhibition, Mall Galleries, London
Royal Society of Marine Artists, Portsmouth
Royal Academy Summer Exhibition, Royal Academy of Arts, London
New English Art Club Annual Exhibition, Mall Galleries, London
Royal Society of British Artists Annual Exhibition, Mall Galleries, London
Hertford Art Society ‘Royal Navy Britannia’, Chatham, Kent
‘White Horses’, Chatham, Kent
‘Britains Painters’, Westminster, London

Publications

‘Celebration of Marine Art: Sixty Years of the Royal Society of Marine Artists’, Bounty Books, 2005
“Still Life and Florals”, ‘International Artist’, 2004