Ali Hodgkinson

Was Michelangelo good at art? Most people would probably say yes. What about Joan Mitchell? I believe many people would hesitate. How about Millais? Or Monet? ... Matisse? Even if we agree they are all 'good', it becomes immediately clear that they are not good in the same way. Michelangelo pursued anatomical mastery and the structural logic of the body while Mitchell’s work is rooted in gesture, movement, and the physical encounter with paint. Millais worked toward precision, observation,...

For many years I owned a beautiful set of oil paints that I did not use. An old boyfriend bought them for me one Christmas. He knew that I carried a deep yearning to become an artist, and it was his way of saying he took that seriously. The paints were artist-grade oils in a handmade solid mahogany case with brass fittings and a leather handle. When you opened the case, a lift-out tray revealed orderly rows of colour: vivid cadmiums, earthy ochres and umbers, each tube sitting neatly in its...