Shedding light on growing success of artist Chris

Chris Cyprus with his paintings

An artist who has gone back to his roots in a search of inspiration has found enthusiastic buyers for his unique paintings.

After eight years as a self-taught painter, Chris Cyprus has switched from portraying Saddleworth’s stunning landscapes to painting allotments on hillsides.

And his paintings are being snapped up by buyers at home and abroad who find a magnetic appeal in the secret world of garden sheds and home-grown root vegetables.

In fact, the 32-year-old from Mossley is now working on his first commission for an allotment painting ordered by an American family living in California.

Speaking at the opening of his new show in Uppermill, Chris said his passion for painting allotment scenes began with a fascination with the humble garden shed.

“They are secretive places,” he said. “What was hidden inside, how old it was, and the aesthetic look has always interested me.

“There’s a kind of nostalgia to sheds that evokes images of grandads with flat caps, pipes, and vests.

Inspired

“But this is a very stereotypical view of the allotments. Today there are just as many women as men interested in growing their own vegetables.”

He says his work is inspired by his favourite artists, Van Gogh and Paul Cezanne, who were at the forefront of the Impressionist movement.

“At the time, their paintings were derided by most of their contemporaries and rejected by the public,” he said. “Only now do we look at these paintings as the greatest, most celebrated artists in the history of all art movements.

“The same thing happened with L S Lowry in the 1950s. People said he couldn’t paint to save his life, but now he has museums, hotels — even roads — named after him. This is the difference between good painters and artists.”

Chris, whose wife is expecting their first child, has appeared on BBC TV’s “Gardeners World” talking about his work.

“That really boosted my profile,” he said. “I am now getting inquiries from all over the country and abroad about my works.”

He added: “When I first met people on allotments, it reminded me of Van Gogh’s ‘Farm Workers’ and some of Lowry’s figures.

“They gave me immediate inspiration, so much so that I rushed back to the studio to capture my experiences of that first visit. This lead to an addiction to my subjects and I now even have my own plot!”

He added: “Digging potatoes, for example, and the excitement of watching your own vegetables grow is really satisfying. It brings the child spirit out of us.”

Interest

Joan Frost who runs the Millyard Gallery in The Square off Uppermill High Street, with her husband, John, said: “There is a big interest in Chris’s work. It really has caught the public’s imagination.”

The gallery is open 10am- 5pm daily except Sunday Sunday (11am-4pm). It is closed on Tuesdays.