Here is a selection of my work recently shown at Epsom Racecourse with Art Surrey. It was an interesting event with over 80 artists from all over the country showing their work. I was delighted to meet many of my customers who live locally. If you missed it, or would just like to review what you have seen here is a selection from my favourite themes : Mars, Goats and Birds. I have also added new themes- I was inspired by photographs from the National Geographic magazine of feathers to create the Bird of Paradise paintings. I have always loved Abalone shells and used them to inspire the colours and shapes of my latest work. There is also a quirky collection of paintings inspired by an Italian tractor called ORSI.
My recent work is inspired by pushing the boundaries of acrylic mixed media and adding new materials. I have discovered copper mesh and combined it with acrylics, alcohol ink and aluminium to create unique pieces of art. The aluminium gives the work a wonderful iridescence, the mesh unusual texture and the alcohol inks are strong vibrant colours.
Pineapple Parakeet World
Image 1 of 26
14x18" Mixed media, collage on gold metal leaf . SOLD
To buy artworks from this exhibition which has now closed visit my online Artwork Store
I had a great year in 2023. I exhibited at four venues and sold my art to lovely people in Epsom and Dorking. I also entered a number of art competitions to exhibit in London. It was my experience of these competitions that led me to the conclusion that I need to take control of my own career and create my own exhibition opportunities.
As an artist you can enter the competitions from £20 per painting and with some of these it appears a lottery for the artist and a money spinner for the organisers. Helpful software platforms have been created to manage the online process of submissions which are great revenue generators. The summer exhibition run by the RA charge over £30 to enter and have over 10,000 entries. One art society in London had the clever idea of inviting guest artists at a small fee of £15 a time. This contributes to the cost of their 4 private views in the first week with drinks and nibbles!
I was fortunate this year to work with two artist led organisations: First for Art run by the talented Susan Sheen and Arthouse Galleries run by Dilys Foster and Kate Winskill. This provided me with a great opportunities to exhibit and sell my art and I would like to thank them all.
I have decided that it’s time for me to take back control: No more art society competitions! No more of the lottery of the Summer Exhibitions and the Mall Galleries! I will organise my own exhibitions and invite artists to exhibit with me and share the costs between us!
I have been looking for a new venue for 2024 for a while. I am really pleased to have found The Horton Community Arts Centre in Epsom, Surrey. I will be curating my first exhibition there in June 2024. I will be exhibiting a large selection of new my work, plus prints covering 18 metres. I will be joined by 4 other talented artists : Lynn Toulson, Emma Champion, Sue Sheen and Photographer Laurence Berle.
Lynn’s work is inspired by nature and her surroundings. She works from her own photographs to create beautiful textured works in oil and acrylic in a realistic style that is beautiful and contemporary.
Emma is an experimental photographer and mixed media artist working primarily with darkroom materials and camerless techniques. The artwork she makes is a collection of fleeting moments, emotional responses, reflections and affirmations.
Sue paints her work in an eclectic style and her work reflects her mood and the light of the day. Her work can be figurative or abstract and is executed in acrylic and mixed media.
Laurence is a talented photographer and chooses a diverse range of subjects from wildlife to aircraft.
Rue is an experimental mixed media artist using a wide range of media and materials to create vibrant, sculptural tactile work that depict whimsical and unusual subjects.
Exhibition. This week (24/10/23-04/11/23) I will be exhibiting new work on aluminium at The Horton Community Arts Centre Epsom. All work is for sale and you can take it home from the moment you buy. Prices on new work range from £195 to £895.
STOP PRESS: The exhibition is now over, but you can still buy the work from my online shop
The Artists Shoes, my favourite shoes complete with paint of the month. On gold aluminium with acrylic and alcohol inks 14×16″ framed in black.
Alcohol inks on aluminium are vibrant and exciting. The colours can be opaque or transparent and it delivers a burst of colour, light and texture different to acrylics. I started using them with aluminium as an alternative to painting on gold leaf.
ORSI. Inspired by an Italian brand of steam tractor available Glazed and framed in dark bronze 60c60 cm.
Iridescent Dreams on gold aluminium with alcohol ink and acrylic. 14×16″ framed in black.
Autumn ExhibitionNew works on Yupo and canvas
Cat TV. My cats used to sit on the windowsill and watch the slightest movement outside for hours. Painted in alcohol ink, on Yupo ( plastic paper) with acrylic mixed media. Framed in black 50x50cm.
ORSI Symphony. Unique artwork depicting the ORSI tractor with an Art Deco influence. Acrylic, collage and mixed media. Framed in black 45x45cm approx.
My Online store is open now. You will be able to purchase my latest original artworks online as well as a selection of embellished prints on paper and canvas. There is 15% discount till 31st December on all order placed. see store page for more details.
This painting was inspired by my Christmas cruise of 2019 to Scandinavia. On the quay at Oslo harbour were floating saunas and I could see the back of a couple who were having a great time.
The saunas were advertised on this rack of canoes. When I got home I found out the company was started by a young man who needed a bath! Having been out sailing he was surprised that on arriving in Oslo( a bit mucky) there were no saunas so he decided to provide his own for travelers and revelers.
My couple are having an especially good time having discarded their bathing suits and polished off a bottle of wine.
In the background you will see the Oslo skyline- completely ficticious except for the opera house on the right and the triangular sculpture.
Floating Saunas in Oslo, outline drawing
The sea and an additional Floating Sauna starts to appear.In the summer, they float them out into the harbour and people jump off.
In the harbour
The canoes are added and the crackled quay.After this photograph, I got so involved in the painting I forgot to take more pictures. I can tell you I spent a good deal of time decoration the sauna, finding the loving couple and throwing paint at the skyline.
Finished picture
If you have enjoyed Floating Saunas in Oslo you can see more in the July issue of Surrey Life and visit my exhibition at Denbies Wine Estate from July 19th 2022. Prints are available from £22.
Showing this weekend at the Contemporary Art Fair Surrey at Sandown Park. “It’s a Small World” started life as an experiment with gold iridescent paints and heavy gloss mediums. Layers and washes of gold have been applied over the surface. Which has been enhanced with bronze,silver and cadmium red. Look closely, you will see textures and something else…..
I have been delving into surrealism. Following a dream about goats going up the mountainside. I decided the goats deserved their own world. Welcome to pineapple goat world. The pineapple landscape has been created from paper collage which is a painted map of Reigate.
You can see the map more clearly in the leaves of the pineapple. The collage has been applied and then outlined with gold tube lining. The small goats are Toggenberg goats.
“It’s a Small World” is 28x33cm and framed.
If you are curious about the Little Gems Collection- I would love to meet you and answer your questions. I am exhibiting at The Contemporary Art Fair Surrey 2022 this weekend. 4th- 6th March 2022 at Sandown Park, Esher, Surrey
You can book tickets here SANDOWN CONTEMPORARY ART FAIR 2022. Use code SS-COMP for free tickets on Saturday and Sunday or code PV-COMP for the private view this evening. (Friday 4th March)
1)How did you start painting? I did O level art at school. I was keen, so I would have other projects such as painting and pottery which I did at a local youth club and the art room at school. While I was working, I would paint a couple of abstract paintings a year. I love colour so these were unsophisticated efforts which were just an excuse to fling paint at the canvas. When I retired, I went to an experimental art class at a local college. This started me off experimenting and developing my skills. I started a painting group at my house for a few friends who encouraged me to start exhibiting.
2) How did you manage to get your first exhibition? I went to Denbies and got to know a fantastic lady called Sue Sheen who said that I could exhibit with her group- First for Art for a small fee. This was in 2018 and I have been exhibiting with her ever since then.
3) Who buys your work? I have sold work at Denbies to people from around Surrey and London, to tourists from Australia, America, and Poland. My work Is eye-catching – it’s bright and tactile. This is because I use acrylic, gold leaf, glass, collage and mixed media.
4) Where do you paint? I started in painting in what used to be my office in my house. I have an antique desk and carpet on the floor- so I had to be careful as acrylic is messy! The antique desk was covered with a plastic tablecloth, and I invested in a daylight bulb lamp. The carpet is now embellished with purple acrylic ink. When I tripped over the lamp and nearly brained myself, I thought it was time to get a studio. Luckily, my husband was quite encouraging, so I decided to build a log cabin at the bottom of the garden and join Open Studios.
What is Open Studios? Surrey ArtistsOpen Studios is organised by the Surrey Artists Open Studios program. It runs in June, and October. Local artists pay a membership fee to join and open their studios to the public. The program markets the artists studios through leaflets and their website. Members of the public can visit the artists studios and see their processes, materials and buy finished works.
Rue Stanley Art (surreyopenstudios.org.uk)
5) When is your studio open, and what will people see? I am opening for 5 days in October at weekends: 2nd,3rd,10th,17th,24th October 11-5pm. There is no need to book you can just turn up. I am in Tattenham Crescent so very local.
My work is semi-abstract inspired by the natural world and my travels. No travelling this year so I have travelled in my imagination: my latest collection features a series of abstract landscapes. I have also looked for inspiration in the garden and nature.
At my studio you will see paintings, jewellery & prints created from: collage, acrylic, mediums, glass, gold leaf, watercolour and polymer clay. Original unique artworks are from £20- £800. Plus, prints, jewellery and gifts from
