Kostis I. Papadakis, Philologist - Theologian, www.ret-anadromes.blogspot.com, August 2021.
From 6 to 23 August, the exhibition of paintings by Frederick J. Featham, entitled: "'Fortezza: A Tribute' was held under the auspices of the Municipality of Rethymnon.
The well-known Rethymnian painter and English teacher presented twenty oil paintings on the theme of the Fortezza of Rethymnon. It should be noted, however, that apart from his thirteen solo exhibitions, Fred Featham has taken part in seventeen group exhibitions, the most important of which are the one at the Florence Biennale and, next September, another international exhibition organised by the historic Galleria della Biblioteca Angelica in Rome, in which he will participate, among others, with his paintings published with this presentation. It should also be noted that paintings and prints by the artist from Rethymnon are currently in important collections in Greece, as well as in Britain, France, Italy, Belgium, the Netherlands, Germany and the USA.
In the past, Fred Featham as a skilled landscape artist has painted countless subjects - villages, skies, seas - using the techniques of watercolour, oil painting and printmaking. However, for this exhibition he has chosen as his sole subject the Fortress, which has inspired and moved him in many ways, because its appearance changes dramatically according to the time, the season, the good or bad weather, the calm or rough sea.
Apart from these aspects, there is also the immense mass of the Fortress, the wonderful natural environment, the sky and the sea, in which the imposing and majestic fortress of Rethymno is perfectly located, and which like a fairy of great beauty seems to emerge there from the depths of the Cretan Sea. It is impossible, therefore, for the Fortress of Rethymno to be separated from the watery element that surrounds it, nor from the celestial dome that covers it, elements which the painter uses appropriately, according to the time and season of the year, to express and complete the varied moods of his soul.
To interpret this particular subject the painter has preferred the use of oil paint as a material which allows him the facility to give the widest possible scale to the above-mentioned changes in colouring and all kinds of plastic detail in the masses. What, however, always seems to be of primary interest to him in all his artistic creations is light, and he called his creations, we remember, "play of light" in a previous exhibition.
Thus, in the present exhibition light occupies a central position, which he exploits and promotes in the best possible ways, putting it in a dynamic orbit and confrontation with the subject of each of his paintings. He experiments and "plays" with it by using all the harmonies and tonalities to this end, intensified by the frequent contrasts of light and shadow, so that, in the final analysis, Fred's paintings, whatever the subject, exude light and only light, light that varies according to the season, the weather, the sun, the clouds and the time.
His transparent colours succeed one another in a mysterious harmony with the pattern and rhythm of the painted surfaces. Colours are vivid, using mainly basic tones, with sometimes small and sometimes obvious bold brushstrokes, which emphasise the representation of light, but also the black colour of the "unseen", so that Fred Featham’s works, with all their natural simplicity and clarity, bring out the deeper truth and reality of the castle of Rethymnon, however incomprehensible and enigmatic it may seem at times.
In painting, Fred Featham seems to try everything; he experiments, creatively seeks and always proposes something new, something great, and brilliantly impressive. And this time he found it in the Fortezza of Rethymnon, which has been and still is one of the greatest constants, both because of the beauty and the power that this place radiates, which is often identified with Rethymno, being the "trademark" of our town, but perhaps even because of the incredible change and destruction it has undergone over time, while maintaining, despite this, its unmistakable identity.
He studies dimensions, proportions, colours, masses, showing particular interest in the exact position of each detail. Nothing is accidental in his creations. Such richness in so few lines, from the vastness of the blue of the sea and sky to the soft glow of bare stone in the first or last light of day, at all hours of the year. Colours everywhere, in the mood of a rich and effective celebration.
We congratulate our dear friend Fred Featham. We wish him good luck in his fruitful and creative pursuits in the beautiful world of painting, all of which become wide openings of light, allowing the truth of his contemplative quests to shine through and radiate. His work is substantial and above all endowed with the sincere inspiration of the creator and his totally personal style.
