A Lake District spa hotel has hosted the book launch for a biography of a prominent North West artist.
‘Fields of Marks’, which celebrates the life and work of Milan Ivanič, has been published during the artist’s display in the Art in the Atrium gallery at Low Wood Bay Resort & Spa.
Written by Roz Ivanič, Milan’s wife of over 50 years, the book blends the story of their life together with details of his working practices as an artist. Every page of the narrative is illustrated with Milan’s paintings, drawings and prints, with their style, lines and colours bringing vivid immediacy to the accompanying words.
English Lakes Hotels Resorts & Venues hosted the book launch event at the spa resort in partnership with Lancaster based Gavagan Art.
Milan’s story and journey as an artist is told as much through pictures as through words. It begins with his childhood as ‘the boy who couldn’t stop drawing’ in the 1950s in the Socialist Republic of Czechoslovakia, and his life-changing decision to leave in 1970 for a future with the author.
Mary Gavagan from Gavagan art says: “This is a pathbreaking biography of a great talent, a first-hand account of one painter’s passion for capturing the world around him. It also tells the heart-warming story of Milan’s decision to settle in England and marry Roz, and how he went on to make a name for himself as a freelance artist here.”
“Fields of Marks is a real collector’s item for art enthusiasts, especially those keen to support fine art and artists in the North West,” says Simon Berry from English Lakes Hotels. “With Roz’s book being published during Milan’s gallery exhibition at Low Wood Bay, it was perfect timing for us to host the launch and celebrate their success.”
Before writing Fields of Marks, Roz Ivanič worked in secondary, further and higher education, including in the Linguistics Department at Lancaster University, and specialising in the teaching of writing.
She has previously published books and articles about her research on identity in academic writing, and on everyday literacies as resources for learning.
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