Local Artist R. Pattison, Gateshead Based Professional Oil Painter

Hello! I’m Local Artist Ronnie Pattison.

I’m a local artist based in Gateshead. I have always loved art and been creative and so at the age of 15 my brother-in-law took me into Newcastle to an art shop where I bought my first set of oil paints and brushes. I was fascinated with them and was soon painting all the local scenes in my area; The Tyne Bridge, Swing Bridge, St. James’ Park, Durham Cathedral, Bamburgh Castle, Alnwick Castle…..and then masterpieces from my favourite artist John Constable; The Hay Wain, Flatford Mill, Dedham Vale, The Cornfield; he was a huge inspiration to my art.

After I mastered these I returned to painting very detailed paintings of the Tyne Bridge which I called The Effect of Lights which I entered in to an art competition at the Laing Art Gallery, Newcastle. My piece got in but the painting that won was a scribbly sketch of the Tyne Bridge which looked like a child had drawn it and I vowed I would never enter another art competition and until this day I haven’t.

Ronnie Pattison - Professional Local Artist

Family

My dear mam Ada was my inspiration behind my oil paintings. Whenever I was doing a painting I would ask her opinion and she was very honest and critical but I never took it as critisism as she was always right and my paintings went from strength to strength. My lovely mam was so proud of me and showed everyone she met my paintings. I turned some of the paintings in to prints and she got me lots of sales to friends, family and every one she knew.

In 1992 I lost my inspiration when my mam sadly lost her long battle fighting cancer aged just 60. I’m the youngest of my siblings with three older sisters and an older brother. I was the only one still living at home with my mam as I was just 21 and when I was on holiday in Tenerife my mam sadly passed. I took it really badly and was unable to paint. I did really try to paint as my mam made me promise her that I would never give up my paintings but it just didn’t work and I didn’t do any paintings for the next 7 years until out of the blue my inspiration had returned.

My lovely mam was the glue in our family and we were all close but after her death everyone became more distant and drifted further apart. It was so sad.

My biggest regret was that she never saw me get married and never met my beautiful daughter Lucy. She would have adored her.

Starting My Business

After leaving school I worked for Ringtons Tea for 13 years. I opened a shop with my sister-in-law in 2002. She ran half the shop as a greeting card shop and I had the other half doing my paintings. Sadly, after 1 year, she left and so for the next 6 years I ran the full shop as a greeting card shop. I spent some time painting from a unit in Blaydon whilst running the shop.

Pattisons Art Shop,
Local Artist in Gateshead Metrocentre

In 2010 I opened my art studio in the Metrocentre called Pattisons selling prints and doing the oil paintings in the window. As a local artist trying to get my work out, it was ideal. It was situated upstairs opposite Costa coffee. Running the shop at Birtley at the same time as this one proved to be difficult and so for that reason, after one year I closed the Metrocentre shop.

Low Fell Card Shop

I closed my shop in Birtley in 2011 and opened a greeting card shop called PATTISONS in Low Fell, Gateshead. We stock over 20,000 cards from only 30 pence. Please pop in for a chat and to see me paint my oil paintings in the shop window.