All posts tagged: sunset

Painting a cuddle from the past- A treasured commission

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One of the greatest joys of being an artist is painting something that not only makes you happy, but makes others very happy too.  For me, there is no greater satisfaction in life than painting something that truly puts a smile on somebody’s face (as cheesy as that may sound). A few months ago I received an email from a lady who was interested in commissioning a painting of someone very special to her. It would be in memory of her little girl who sadly passed away from brain cancer several years ago.  She hoped that I would be able to paint an image that would capture her daughter’s spirit.  From her lovely emails which described this bubbly and unique little girl who adored purple, glitter and the beach, I knew I had my work cut out.  But being asked to capture such a beautiful image of such a special little girl was a gift I was completely honoured by.  So I put a brush to canvas, and I got to work.  Here is the …

A Beautiful Dream

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I love how enchanting hot air balloons look floating gently across the sky. To me, they represent a whimsical form of escapism from reality. I cannot help wondering where they are going, and like to think it’s somewhere magical.   As an artist, they are ultimately a HUGE source of inspiration for me, and feature in several of my recent works.   So imagine my SHEER EXCITEMENT when two beautiful hot air balloons appeared happily in the sky on my doorstep this evening.  I was on my way back from the corner shop (picking up wine- thank god it’s Friday) when they graced my vision with their presence.  Needless to say I quickly scooted back to the house, bolted up the stairs, grabbed my camera, and ran back out into the evening sun like a CRAZY PERSON. I am a ‘newbie photographer’ as well as an artist and thought this was an excellent opportunity to improve my photography skills as well as provide me with reference photos for my  painting.  Here are the results.     …

Why do we like art?

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‘Moving objects, like asteroids and Twitter tweets, come and go in short order. Art is stationary and it doesn’t change, except in how it is beheld’-  Perry Fisher Not only have I always loved art, but I’ve also always been immensely curious about it.  More specifically,  why do humans like to look at and create art?  What is it about viewing a certain image that generates a particular emotion, or desire to create within us?  So I decided to see what answers the vast world that is the internet has to offer, as well as provide my own little thoughts… Before I begin, I think it is important to note that these speculations are only covering humans in general, and do not account for individual differences in taste.  Although I am equally interested as to why it is  ‘one man’s trash is another man’s treasure’,  I think I will cover this in another post to keep this one to the point 🙂 WHY DO HUMANS LIKE TO LOOK AT ART?  We are social creatures.   Art provides an …

The Little Things…

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  There are a few little things about being an artist that I would like to draw attention to.  Some of these points may be fairly obvious to most of you, but  I think these points also cover some of the things that nobody really talks about. Things that I had to find out on my own… HANDY LITTLE SNIPPETS 1)  Do not underestimate how much paint you will get on yourself.  No matter how careful you are, or how meticulously you think you may have washed your hands, YOU WILL get paint on yourself or some unwitting inanimate object. I often find myself rushing to clean up the paint that I have smudged over my favourite mug,  unknowingly smearing more paint on with a hand I thought was paint free.   And that’s the thing about paint, it has a cunning way of hiding just out of plain sight (somewhere sneaky like an elbow or a foot) and reappearing somewhere uninvited (like your mobile phone). This is a war I am forever battling against, …

Where do you find your inspiration?

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    Inspiration (literally meaning “to breathe into”) refers to an unconscious burst of creativity in a literary, musical, or other artistic endeavour – Wikipedia (of course). But where do we find it, and what can we do to facilitate it? From my point of view, there is nothing more satisfying than being completely absorbed in painting something beautiful and watching my own little colourful world come to life on a previously blank canvas.  Having said that, creative inspiration is magical when I have it, and frustrating as can be when I don’t.  As a part time artist, I have committed myself to spending as much time as I possibly can in pursuit of my work.  But sometimes, when I get in from the day job it can be a struggle to switch into ‘arty mode’ and force myself to paint.  No matter how hard I remind myself that I HAVE to stay focused and I HAVE to paint if I want to make my dream a full time reality, sometimes a stern word is just not enough.  I …

How does an artist know when a piece is finished? Part 2

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Firstly, I have to apologise that I haven’t posted recently- I’ve been very busy with commissions and preparing for a little solo exhibition (framing, organising and varnishing take so much longer than you would think!).  I do all of this along side a full time job, and sometimes I just wish I was like Hermione from Harry Potter with the time travelling watch just so I could squeeze it all in.  But unfortunately I’m not, so for now I make do with being almost entirely nocturnal…hoot hoot.  My last post briefly tackled my take on the mystery ‘how does an artist know when a piece is finished’.  And I surmised that it’s not always the artist who decides this, but the viewers as well.  I chose to leave this piece ‘unfinished’ by popular demand.   However, a few weeks passed, and there the painting was…just looking at me.  Taunting me with it’s unfinished-ness.  So I caved, and put it back on the easel as a working progress.  And  after a few touch ups here and …

How does an artist know when a painting is finished?

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  I recently shared the start of my latest painting to my Facebook art page.  To me it was just the beginning, the skeleton if you like, of a piece I planned a lot more work for.  However, the response I received for a painting I thought was in it’s infancy was surprisingly positive, with the general consensus being to leave it just as it is…. That got me thinking, how do you know when a piece is finished? So I had a little look on the internet to see what other artist’s had to say.. ‘I have no fears about making changes, destroying the image, etc., because the painting has a life of its own. I try to let it come through. It is only when I lose contact with the painting that the result is a mess’- Jackson Pollock  ‘I find that at about the point when I no longer want to rip the canvas apart and smash the stretcher, then it’s probably about finished!’ – John Houston ‘The paintings I love most …

Dreaming..

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    “Hold fast to dreams, For if dreams die Life is a broken-winged bird, That cannot fly.” | Langston Hughes       ”Put all you are Into the smallest thing you do. The whole moon gleams in every pool.” | Fernando Pessoa       “You must have chaos within you to give birth to a dancing star.” | Friedrich Nietzsche     “Listen to the mustn’ts, child. Listen to the don’ts. Listen to the shouldn’ts, the impossibles, the won’ts. Listen to the never haves, then listen close to me… Anything can happen, child. Anything can be.” – Shel Silverstein     “Do not go where the path may lead, go instead where there is no path and leave a trail.” | Ralph Waldo Emerson I love all of these inspirational quotes, and fully agree with the message that each and everyone portrays.  Life is for living, and we are only given one shot at it.  Which is why I am fully throwing myself into chasing my dream of becoming a full time professional artist.  Every spare moment …

Colourful Paintings- Rainbow Painter

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  Art is my everything. It is the loud voice in my head that it is constantly singing, that I cannot silence- but do not wish to. It is on my mind as soon as I wake up, and it is the last thing I think about before I fall asleep. It is a core part of who I am and who I want to be, and I am undoubtedly at my happiest when I am painting the beautiful colours that transfix me. I started this blog with the intention to write about my journey from part time artist to full time artist.  So here’s a recent update…in sum, May seems to have been a manic manic month! Suddenly out of the blue everything seems to have changed gear.  I have a little solo exhibition at the end of the month, I am going to be part of Art Crasher’s Gallery tour in LA, and an Art Gallery now has six of my paintings to display and trial with the view to looking into having …

Hot Air Balloon Painting

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    I love how enchanting hot air balloons look floating gently across the sky. To me, they represent a whimsical form of escapism from reality- I cannot help wondering where they are going, but like to think it’s somewhere magical.  Have a look at my latest painting- this is the second hot air balloon themed piece I have painted, and really enjoyed every minute of it.  I intend to paint a few more- what do you think?   Emily x