‘Finding inspiration in natural beauty and harmony’ A homage to Rudi Patterson
Patterson was a bold and talented artist, holding worldwide exhibitions throughout his lifetime. Practically all of his works of art feature some type of natural beauty, trees, plants, flowers. This heavy influence was as a result of him being brought up in Jamaica, and therefore his paintings pick out the bold tropical colour plants and landscapes of his formative years. His last exhibition, ‘Visions of colour’, was held in West Indian-owned Effra Hall Tavern in Brixton. He painted in gouache, watercolour, acrylic and oil. In later years he produced colour-drenched abstracts and still life’s.
'“I’m inspired by natural beauty and harmony, I love to paint” Rudi Patterson
Patterson’s style did not come to him straight away, nor was he an artist from the beginning of his existence. He developed his own unique and consistent style after having moved from Jamaica to London in the 50’s, as a part of the post-Windrush generation. From these eyries, Patterson composed hundreds of evocations of mostly Caribbean scenes. Vivid montane landscapes, plantation villages, luxuriant tropical vegetation and crops, beaches with rivers flowing onto them… all somehow visualised from the urban jungle of West London, specifically the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea.
A Piece from 1981 by Rudi Patterson
Patterson’s prolific output is testament to his tremendous creativity and interest in experimentation. He was very much a self-taught artist, working in an ‘intuitive’ style, Patterson’s landscapes are notable for their potent use of colour. Mostly painted in three council flats where Patterson lived, the landscapes reflect the tropical vistas of St Thomas in the lea of Jamaica’s Blue Mountains, around Patterson’s birthplace in the sugar plantation village of Duckenfield. Patterson made his view of Notting Hill seem Caribbean by placing hibiscus flowers in the foreground.
‘From Jamaica to Notting hill’ by Rudi Patterson
Originally Patterson came to England in an effort to fulfil his ambition of putting his skills onto the stage rather than on canvas. As part of the explosion of Caribbean culture in West London, which gave birth to the Notting Hill Carnival, Patterson became a well-known figure on the London scene in the 60s and 70s. London allowed his creative juices to flow. He was at home in every milieu the city could offer; aristocratic, thespian, bohemian – a keen gallery goer and cultural activist.
Gardens and Landscapes by Rudi Patterson
His dynamic personality is evident in his vividly colourful works, although his true potential as an artist was seemingly unlocked through personal adversity. After breaking his neck in a water-skiing accident in the early 70s Patterson was confined to bed for months of convalescence, during which he painted incessantly. He learnt to walk again and became a prolific artist. His pieces being a somewhat idealised and romanticised dream of the Jamaican countryside of his childhood, created in distinctly non-tropical London.
‘Goodbye for Now, Rudi’ by Rudi Patterson
Through these every day and yet unfamiliar scenes, laden with cultural and social references, Rudi Patterson’s visions of colour open the gates of memory, addressing his people’s story. Jamaican society was created despite displacement and noted for its defiance, its irieness. What you see in these paintings is not as hedonistic or arcadian as it seems. Rudi’s remembrances are seldom singular in their meaning. For those unfamiliar with island life, the depiction of an orange or mango harvest can be appreciated simply for the intricate representation of the fruit laden branches or vibrant use of palette and tone. The cleverly skewed perspectives, the ripeness of the fruit, the solidity of the mountains are all evidence of the artist’s undeniable skill.
