The award recognises his lifelong contribution to both music and art education & Rolf has also said he would return to Hope University later in 2010 for a new exhibition of his work, something sure to bring big crowds into the University gallery.

Two amazing quotes from Rolf’s Speech at the event stick in my mind:

‘The greatest gift my parents gave me was the belief that you can do whatever you want to do, as long as you know what you want to do and do your homework…

…I wish my mother and father could have been here to see this. They were always so supportive of me. They would have been immensely proud.”

As indeed we all are Rolf!

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More Links, Videos & Pictures of the event:
www.liverpooldailypost.co.uk
Hope University’s coverage
www.liverpoolecho.co.uk

‘Loved’ limited edition print by Doug Hyde

…art from which a percentage of the profits goes to a good cause.

Yes it’s true, the UK’s most popular contemporary artist: the ever-optimistic, fantastic, artistic Doug Hyde is also generous to a fault. One such painting, called ‘Loved’ was originally released through one outlet in the UK and a small percentage of profits went to the ‘Families for Children’ adoption charity - The piece has never been on general release in the UK.

Now available from January 2010 for anyone to buy for the first time, this cute picture has been released with a special Time Limited £ offer!…up until Feb 14th 2009

Fans that missed this piece the first time around will be thrilled. As you can see, it features a little boy hugging a huge teddy bear. I find this piece very emotive, making me think of my own childhood, of love, hope and happiness. So it is very apt that it was originally released for the ‘Families for Children’ Charity.

Don’t forget the ever popular Hearts & Smiles! This was another title that was released to benefit a National Charity called: ‘Look Good…Feel Better’ which is a charity that helps female cancer patients, Look Good! & Feel Better!…simple! As with ‘Loved’ a small percentage of profits again went to charity.

‘Hearts & Smiles’ Open Edition & signed print by Doug Hyde

Do use the links at the bottom to find out more about the charity & remember that many of these charities rely on the generous donations of the public to continue their vital work. The team at Fineartblog would like to thank in advance everyone who decides to donate to these charities.

Links

www.familiesforchildren.org.uk
www.lookgoodfeelbetter.co.uk

‘Tinto II’ limited edition canvas by Fabian Perez

Despite this somewhat rough background, his images are romantic, the subjects are beautiful & Perez paints them with equal parts of awe and respect. The casual observer would never equate the ladies with those that work in brothels, nor the men with those that frequent them – as of course the quality of the art speaks much louder than any ‘story’ behind them.

‘Tess III’ limited edition canvas Fabian Perez

His style reminds me somewhat of the work of UK artist Hamish Blakely, especially his newer work, in that both enjoy showing subjects with dark backgrounds on the canvas, presumably to reflect nighttime or a low lit venue; both also paint beautiful Hispanic women almost always posed facing to the side or away from the artist, as well as men wearing trilby hats low on their faces, so that the face is covered in shadow. I admire both of their works in their own right.

‘The Last To Leave’ limited edition on board by Hamish Blakely

I also find the sculpture recreations of Fabian Perez’s work very stylish. The ‘Man in Black Suit’ - Sculpture is my favourite, the detail in the piece is incredible: the folds in the clothing make it realistic and the pose struck by the character makes me think of Michael Jackson in his ‘Smooth Criminal’ video – in fact Michael is dressed in a suit with a trilby hat on, not a far cry from the characters we are discussing!

Michael Jackson from his Smooth Criminal video

Something you may not know about Fabian Perez is that he is a keen martial Artist. Perez says he gained many things through the discipline of Martial Arts & he uses it in his art, by clearing his mind through meditation before painting. For Perez, Martial Arts are not his hobby, they are a significant part of his life.

‘Man in Black Suit - sculpture’ by Fabian Perez

Links:
Argentina, Perez’s home country

Argentinian nightlife

Thanks,

Vicki

Her preferred mediums are handmade papers and bright inks, which she uses to create her Original paintings. This style may sound unusual but it matches her art perfectly. Her limited editions are then reproduced from these original works.

‘Naughty Little Number II’ limited edition print by Nicky Belton

Nicky Belton is most well known and loved for her pictures of corsets and other lingerie, however she also paints cats, dogs and female accessories such as handbags and shoes. This means that her art tends to appeal to women a little more than it does to men but I have still heard men say how beautiful her art work is!

‘Corsets I’ - original artwork by Nicky Belton

Her designs are beautiful yet a little bit saucy. Her original art with their intricate designs & colours actually matches the colour & feel of the paper well. The slightly creased, materialistic texture of the handmade paper gives an interesting look to the artwork and I don’t believe it would looks as good without it. I especially like her pictures of corsets with pretty designs of flowers embellished with silver paint. The colours in these pieces are more subdued yet opaque.

Kinky Corsets I, limited edition print by Nicky Belton

I think it worth paying that little bit extra for an original piece of artwork, after all, how could one not appreciate more the handmade paper and the hand-embellished artwork? Of course all original work is unique - so when a person buys a piece of her art there will never be another exactly the same & that is another reason buyers prefer them. I have heard several viewers say that if only Nicky actually made the lingerie accessories she paints, because they would buy them!

Links:
To learn how to make your own paper
How to buyer Lingerie for your body type

Shoreline Fire, limited edition print by Lawrence Coulson

Coulson grew up around art, as his father Gerald Coulson was a successful artist, painting mainly landscape and aviation scenes. However, Lawrence did not feel as adept at painting as his father & so never viewed art as a career choice, painting only as a hobby.

His favourite medium at that time was watercolours but later his father persuaded him to experiment with oils instead. This he did, with much trepidation and soon realised he much preferred the results he achieved with oil paints. Eventually, Lawrence Coulson & other began to realised he did have artistic talent…

Catching The Breeze limited edition print by Lawrence Coulson

Coulson was working as a retail manager during this time and struggled with the exciting prospect of trying to become a successful professional artist or playing it safe and staying in his job. But the demand for his art continued to grow until Coulson had to choose between keeping his job or pursuing art as a full time career. Luckily for us, he decided on the latter and plunged into his new career in 1997, inspired by the comments of both his father and many others, including a restaurant owner who asked Lawrence to try selling artwork on his walls - & shortly after that Lawrence got his first customer!

Coulson paints landscapes, and he himself states this is because he loves the British countryside & all the different atmospheres he discovers at different times, in different weathers and in different places, which in essence is what he tries to capture in his paintings.

Moonlight Sparkle limited edition print by Lawrence Coulson

In 2003 Lawrence Coulson won the Fine Art Trade Guilds award for “Best Selling Published Artist” which is a great accomplishment for a self-taught artist. Coulson has also experienced much commercial success and a large fan base & is one of the most recognisable artwork in any high street gallery. It is amazing to think that he was reluctant to leave his other job & become an artist in case he was not successful (he and his wife had a baby at that time) given the phenomenal popularity he has enjoyed.

Today he is one of the most long standing & recognisable Artists working with Washington Green Fine Art publishers & the demand for his work has never been higher

Freedom Is A Place limited edition print by Lawrence Coulson

Thanks

Vicki

Links:
How to paint landscape art
English Countryside Images
BBC Article ‘English countryside almost gone’

‘Into The Sun’ by Rolf Harris

‘Into The sun,’ is a stunning lioness face study & Rolf captures beautifully the features of this most majestic of animals; stalking her prey or about to start a chase? the viewer is left to decide!

‘Uluru Sunset’ By Rolf Harris

‘Uluru Sunset’ is the second piece. Uluru, also known worldwide as ‘Ayers Rock,’ is the world famous landmark in Uluru - Kata Tjuta National Park. To view the sunset there is one of the most popular excursions in the whole of Australia. With the rich warm colours, Rolf captures perfectly the scene in his trademark style.

As is usual now they are released as (1) an on paper version, which comes mounted/matted (with its borders) and will need to be glassed and framed or (2) an on canvas board edition: these are of a higher print quality & are as near a match to his original painting as possible, these are designed to not be framed but not glassed.

Rolf with his wobble board

Demand for these is huge, own a part of art history and be a part of Rolf Harris’ s 80th birthday year by owning these stunning pieces

Thanks you

James

Links:
Everchanging colours of Ayers Rock on video
Living With Lions, lion conservation group
Rolf Harris to do a song with Dizzee Rascal & the Chemical Brothers for his 80th Birthday!

Blondie by Simon Claridge

From that time, he still wanted nothing else but to become an artist and painted whenever he had the chance. He says that he could not, and still cannot, imagine a life where he would not be an artist. His art quickly became popular with the public, he gained a large fan base, and was published by Washington Green.

Kate by Simon Claridge

Claridge claims to love the human form and his art does reflect this. The inspiration for these six pieces are celebrity women, including Twiggy, Kate Moss and Blondie. Simon uses Acrylic paint to achieve his look, topped off with ‘diamond dust’ (also the name of his new collection), which really makes the art look unique. These images of celebrities are not new, but the way he has captured them is very clever; they show you how the modern meets the classic. Using old retro style white frames, it gives a classic feel to the art overall.

Monroe by Simon Claridge

Simon has experimented with different art in the past, always coming up with something new and exciting, but I believe that this new style is going to be his most popular yet. This style could easily be continued with other celebrities, perhaps male celebrities next? and I’ll bet that the celebs are queuing up for the opportunity to be painted in this way. The way he paints his subjects with their classic facial expressions and the innovative use of colour (monotone) makes his pictures completely unique to other current artists. In his new collection, when asked which his favourite piece is, he said that his favourite piece is “Twiggy”.

Twiggy by Simon Claridge

You really need to get yourself to a gallery and see for yourself how great these pictures look, a photo online does not do this fantastic art justice at all. The diamond dust is not visible on the pictures, and you just can’t appreciate all the craftsmanship and thought that has gone into this art without looking at it face to face. I still can’t believe it was painted, not computerized!!!

Links:
More on Twiggy
More on Kate Moss
More On Marilyn Monroe
More On Blondie

Thanks

Vicki

Timmy Mallett began his media career as a radio presenter, starting at BBC Radio Oxford in the early 1980s and later as a children’s television presenter starting on TV-am. He would become known to millions of viewers of early morning TV for his eccentric dress sense, consisting of brightly coloured shirts & crazy Elton John-esque glasses & his ultra hi-energy presenting.

Sunflowers In France by Timmy Mallet

Many will have memories of Timmy’s actual toy Mallet: Pinky Punky or ‘Mallet’s Mallet’ on TV or dancing to Mallett’s Cover of “Itsy Bitsy Teeny Weeny Yellow Polka Dot Bikini” or more recently in 2008 TV’s ‘I’m A Celebrity… Get Me Out Of Here!’

Rooftops By The Castle - Original by Timmy Mallet

Timmy’s love of art runs very deep & a little known fact is that he studied History of Art, as part of his ‘History’ degree, when attending the prestigious Warwick University (U.K). Mallet has always painted but surprising it was only in recent years that he has decided to ‘put his artwork out there’ & the results, as you can see are pretty extraordinary; Showing a depth of artistic talent not normally associated with zany TV characters! Timmy Mallett’s recognition as an artist is growing rapidly.

Shoreline Sunset by Timmy Mallett

He is also good friends with fellow artist & TV personality Rolf Harris (now an accomplished published artist of some 7 years) and many say they have similar style. Mallett has painted many famous faces including Sir Clive Woodward, Ulrika Jonsson and Jim Rosenthal during Queen Elisabeth’s Golden Jubilee.

Tower Bridge by Timmy Mallett

For 2010, Timmy has released some new pieces which are refreshing and his use of colours intriguing. Don’t be too quick to judge Timmy before studying his artwork carefully. Although his celebrity name might get bums on seats, or bums into galleries!, this is no celebrity cash-in but a serious artist whose talents should be appreciated.

Thanks for reading

James

links:
Timmy’s first Scottish Exhibition in 2008
Official Wacaday website
Surrey Herald Article on Timmy’s artwork

Towards The Light IV - Original by Inam

Inam was born in Karachi, Pakistan, where he was taught how to draw and paint by one of his primary school teachers, who spotted his talent and encouraged him to develop it further. From there he travelled to several cities to study art. In 2001 Inam became a professional artist, with his original art proving extremely popular as well as his limited edition prints. Some of his current original art sells for thousands of pounds and he has fans from all walks of life.

Autumn Splendour by Inam

Inam paints pictures of forests or woods, and his most popular pictures were painted using the colours white, burnt sienna, orange, yellow and red. The way he has uses the colours gives life to the silver birch tree he paints & also seems to represent the seasons; the white one looks like a wintery scene, the oranges and reds give an autumnal feel to the picture, and the yellow one immediately makes you think of summer.

White Woods V - Original by Inam

Inam’s paintings appear to beckon you into them, as he always paints a secret pathway or trail into the forest in his pictures, which is so picturesque and realistic, you feel as though you can easily step into the woods and follow the path into the unknown! Upon closer inspection of his art, you can see that he uses a lot of paint, as the picture is almost three dimensional; with the thick build up of coloured paint to represent the texture of the leaves and branches coming out of the picture.

Burnished Gold by Inam

Links:
How To Paint Landscapes and Trees
Silver Birch Trees
List of Pakistani Artists

Thanks

Emily

Young at Heart by Alexander Millar

A professional artist for some 21 years, Alexander Millar was born and raised in a small mining village in 1960 near Glasgow called Springside & in his own words it felt more like growing up in the 1940s than the 1960s! He spent a lot of his youth around the older generation of Scots: men dressed in dark suits, smoking pipes, and burly women in aprons and headscarves.

His dad worked for British Rail & as a child accompanying him to work, Alexander gained more inspiration for his future paintings as he found the old Railway stations to be very Romantic. Of course the architecture of these stations would have been nostalgic & a throw back to Scotland’s industrial past - this influence is seen throughout Alex’s paintings.

My Family & Other Animals by Alexander Millar

Moving to Newcastle-Upon-Tyne after finishing school aged 16, he tried several jobs before becoming a professional artist in 1988. He claims that it was quite a culture shock to move from the sleepy village he grew up in, to the hustle and bustle of the city, as you can imagine! But the city also had its own share of ‘Gadgies’ - (a northern Scottish term for an older generation man) to inspire his paintings.

Fuelled by his extensive Childhood memories, he had a huge source of inspiration to work from, what is more astonishing is that Alexander is a self taught artist, which is an amazing achievement for any commercial artist.

Keepy Uppy sculpture by Alexander Millar

Thanks,

Vicki

Links
www.scottish-memories.co.uk/
www.accessingscotlandspast.org.uk/
1960s Scotland