Sometimes, I have an idea of what I want to paint, but I don’t know where to start. This pink daisy is the result of that. I started and finished with added green borders which I didn’t initially plan!
Pink Daisy
Category: Art
Where Metal Becomes Magic: Exploring the British Ironworks Centre
A couple of years ago, my friend and I visited the British Ironworks Centre in Oswestry, Shropshire. The centre says:
Each sculpture has its own unique message and aims to educate our visitors on global issues and spread our motto:
Art With Conscience
It’s a cool motto I think and such a great way to get the message across.
It’s a great place to visit – there’s lots to see and do from a sculpture park and grounds to explore to shopping and creative workshops. The first thing I explored was the ladies toilets where I met this fellow taking up one of the cubicles – could have shut the door!
There is a garden full of scrap metal sculptures you can buy.
In the grounds, there are all sorts of sculptures.
You can walk around the Extinction Trail which features endangered wildlife.
This close up photo of a Komodo Dragon sculpture shows the individual components of the whole piece.
There are some interesting figures as well as mythological and well-known pieces.
And ones that make you want to look closer.
All of the sculptures have more information about the individual pieces, but better yet, go and see for yourself! I thoroughly recommend it.
You can find out more on the website:
Doodles
I love doodling and creating shapes with lots of lovely colours. I get inspiration from other artists and sometimes I just let my pen flow!
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Mandala
This mandala was created using a stencil with green and yellow paint and dotting tools to complete it.
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New Zealand Painting on Canvas
This is a painting I did from a photograph when I was travelling around New Zealand. A bit messy, but I like the colours and the impression of the lake and hills.
My art is available on different products, check out my shop on Redbubble:
Art Exhibition in Bangkok
When I lived in Bangkok, one of my favourites things to do was to visit an art exhibition or two.
This photo was from an exhibition called “Illusion of the Human Body”. Large painted canvases showing parts of the body stitched together. It was meant to represent how people turn to plastic surgery to achieve beauty when there is natural beauty in everyone.
I love art and whether I understand the subject or not, I appreciate the artist’s talent and creativeness.
Van Gogh – Alive!
Two years after I went to see the Van Gogh and Britain exhibition, I ventured back to the capital to attend Van Gogh – Alive!
This was an exhibition like no other and certainly not one I have experienced in the past.
“Prepare to transcend time and space as you accompany Van Gogh on a journey through the Netherlands, Arles, Saint Rémy and Auvers-sur-Oise, where he created many of his timeless masterpieces. Set to an evocative classical score, a thrilling display of over 3,000 inspirational images transforms every surface that surrounds you in what has been described as an “unforgettable multi-sensory experience“. At Van Gogh Alive you don’t just look at his paintings, you step inside them and feel their power.” – The website of Van Gogh Alive
The experience has been all over the world and the UK and I went to Kensington Gardens to see it.
So, let’s immerse ourselves in the world of Van Gogh.
A brief interlude in the immersive (and mirrored) sunflower room.
Immersion continues.
This exhibition was fabulous and a different and exciting way to bring art into your world!
Van Gogh Alive continues its tour of the UK in Brighton this month!
Van Gogh and Britain at Tate Britain
On the same day I walked from Millbank to Leicester Square, I attended the Van Gogh Exhibition at Tate Britain.
Taken from the leaflet that I picked up at the gallery – This exhibition is in two parts. The first looks at Van Gogh’s experience in London, the art and literature that caught his attention and its role in his journey as an artist. The second explores the impact of Van Gogh’s art and life on British artists up to the 1950s. The exhibition provides an opportunity to view artworks by Van Gogh afresh, to see British culture through his eyes and to see him through the eyes of British artists he inspired.
There were 9 rooms all dedicated to a specific part of Van Gogh’s life including living in London, his interest in black and white prints, moving to Paris, and continuing to paint throughout his mental illness. It was also interesting to see how his paintings inspired and influenced other painters after his death in 1890.
I hope you enjoy this exhibition as much as I did. (Click the photos to see the full image)
My favourites are Van Gogh’s Sunflowers, Starry Night and one of his self-portaits.
And, of course, it’s also good to get sneaky pictures of other people doing the same as me.
What are your favourite Van Gogh paintings?
I think the final word goes to the man himself;
“Always continue walking a lot and loving nature for that’s the real way to learn to understand art better and better. Painters understand nature and love it, and teach us to see” – Vincent van Gogh to Theo van Gogh, London 1874.
Something old, something new!
Last week, I published ‘Another Day, Another Walk’ and this week I am publishing ‘Something old, something new.’ The same walk a few months apart and this time I walked further and took the long way back home.
On my walks around the town, I may take the same or similar photos, but I always manage to find something new to capture.
And, after many years away from my hometown, I really enjoy exploring it!
Trees and water, buildings and wall art, birds and animals, graffiti, bridges and flowers are all things that I am drawn too and can’t myself taking a few photographs!
What are you drawn too?
Street Art in Northampton
I’ve seen a few pieces of street art in and around Northampton, but it’s the town centre where most of it has been created.
More than a few artists came together as part of the Northampton Wall Games to bring a splash of colour and creativeness to some of the least attractive parts of town.
I think the artists have done an amazing job and their ability to create such striking pieces is admirable.