Looking at Doreen Fletcher's candid landscapes of London — a flicker of Ravilious here, a touch of Canaletto there, plenty of drizzle all over the place — it's a stretch to imagine she could ever have hung up her paint brushes. That's precisely what she did though; retiring in 2004, discouraged by a lack of interest in her work, despite having quite brilliantly captured the worn, pre-gentrified streets of east London and beyond.
Now — thanks to the intervention of east Londoner blogger The Gentle Author — Fletcher is working once more. A retrospective at Nunnery Gallery in Bow displays paintings spanning over three decades — from 1983, up to today's city. Fittingly, it's curated by The Gentle Author.
St George in the East (1991):
Salmon Lane in the Rain (1987):
The Cottage (2017):
The Pubali Cafe, Commercial Road, Limehouse (1996):
Bus Stop (1983):
Commercial Road in the snow, Limehouse:
Bartlett Park:
Commercial Road, Whitsunday (1989):
Corner Shop, Canning Town (1994):
Fishmongers, Commercial Road (2003):
Rene's Cafe (1986):
Laundrette, Ben Jonson Road, Bow (1983):
Ragged School Museum (2017):
Paddington Station at Night (1992):
Portrait of Doreen Fletcher in her Studio (photo by Stuart Freedman).
Doreen Fletcher | A Retrospective, Nunnery Gallery, 181 Bow Road, E3 2SJ, until 24 March (Tues-Sun). Free entry.
