These are difficult and and upsetting times. Like everyone in the world at the moment, I am worried for the future for myself, my loved ones, the NHS, the list is endless. What I have found very strange though at the moment, is that my art is suddenly selling very well. I was not expecting this. I can only put it down to this: people are not able to go to pubs, clubs and restaurants etc., so they are at home looking at their social media. They are looking at and buying art. And they seem to like my fruit and veg paintings. I think this may be because they are small, affordable and fun. They are also painted in cheerful bright colours. Who knows? But I am very grateful. People are buying 2 or 3 to go in their kitchens. They are asking me to paint specific subjects in specific colours; I am happy to oblige. The most recent request was for donuts ! The Krispy Kreme variety. Why not? They are colourful, cheerful and a bit of sugar in these uncertain times is perhaps no bad thing. At the moment,…
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So a new departure for me. I have recently discovered painting ‘alla prima’ or direct painting in oils and have become obsessed with this style of painting. I set up a composition, always small, of fruit or vegetables and set myself a time limit of painting it in one session, hence direct painting. The size is 6 x 6”, 9 x 9” framed (23 x 23 cm). I set the compositions up in direct sunlight (not easy in this country) which is usually at around lunchtime, so as to get the deepest and more interesting shadows beneath the fruit/veg. Then I paint. I have always liked bright, vibrant Mediterranean colours and this works to great advantage with these paintings. I tend to buy fruit/veg in season from my wonderful local organic greengrocer Hugo’s Greengrocer (@hugosgreengrocer on Instagram) on North Street in Bristol where I live, so every painting is always fresh and new. If you would like me to match a composition to suit your wall decor, send me an image of your kitchen, etc., and I will be happy to do this for you. The paintings are framed in a simple white frame for £65, or…
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It’s always so good to see my artwork in a new home and I am grateful when clients take the time to photograph it and post it on social media. So thank you, as this was one of my favourites. I use streetart in my compositions as I am keen to promote and preserve this ephemeral art. This is one of the first street arts I incorporated into my work and it is by the amazing street artist @paulmonsters. He describes himself as a pattern maker on Instagram and I find his colourful geometric shapes fun and uplifting. The streetart was part of the Upfest festival on my street in Bristol, UK. As people who read my Blog will know, I place a woman somewhere in the foreground which changes the dynamic of the street art, the 3d woman bringing the 2d streetart to life and vice versa. In this piece I feel the woman on the wall is watching the woman in red walking past her and wondering why she didn’t notice her. I wanted to show the bright midday sunshine on the girl walking, described by her shadow on the pavement, as it seems harder/harsher. The…
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