Summer Update 2019 June 30, 2019
Summer is here! The sun is shining, well sometimes! The warm weather is here and I have found myself making the most of the extended sunlight we have been blessed with. Where did the last few months go?
Here is a summary of my art practice for the past few months and a sneak peek of what’s coming.
In December I signed up with Degree Art, a prestigious gallery based in Somerset House London who invited me to exhibit with them. Having just returned to the UK and looking to establish my art practice here, this was an amazing welcome, a reassurance that my art belongs in the competitive London market and an impulse to push forward and explore my artistic expressions further.
The end of January saw me taking down the few remaining paintings at the end of ‘The Winter Show’ exhibition in London City Island. It was a beautiful show, organised by Degree Art Gallery and hosted by Trinity Gallery in their superb venue.
In February I signed up with Gallery 92 and was busy producing a collection of smaller works to suit their clientele. The window displayed 4 of my paintings that month and I was feeling blessed as it looked just like the pictures on my goal map from 2018.
Having an idea of what it is you want in life, writing it down or making a goal map, keeps you focused and makes you push forward on in those moments when you don’t feel like doing anything. For me the best part is to look back at my goal map and see the various things that have come true.
It is the best way to keep track of the progress and to appreciate it. I am so eager to look towards the future that sometimes I need a reality check to enjoy the present moment, and my goal/treasure map provides that for me.
In March I was invited to exhibit with Guildford Art Society in their annual ‘Spring Exhibition’. The exhibition was opened by Anne Milton, MP for Surrey and Mr. Michael Parsons, Mayor of Guildford together with Sinclare Webster, the society chairman. Guildford Art Society and Farnham Art Society of which I am now a member, have been a great way for me to connect with fellow local artists and provides a source of fellowship and belonging.
In the meantime, I have been busy trying out a new technique for my painting. I have been layering inks, markers, acrylic washes and then finishing off with oil painting. This is a process I’m still developing and not all the paintings made it all the way to finished pieces, some of them have just gone back to the thick palette knife paintings I’ve been developing in the past 4-5 years.
In May, I exhibited with OKO Art Gallery in Surrey, UK where I showed 12 large paintings. This was an exhibition I was super excited about due to the beautiful space of the gallery and the large space I was given to exhibit. Being able to show a full collection is a joy as the theme and message really comes through.
https://www.okoart.co.uk/news/group-spring-exhibition-19
Most recently, I have just finished my taking part in the Surrey Artists Open Studio. It took place for the first half of June and it was so great to see fans of my work come into my studio to see the paintings up close.
It was also great to see so many of you come into my place of work and understand my frame of mind when I get lost in the paintings.
https://surreyopenstudios.org.uk/home/visitors/open-studios/studios/?ven_number=147
I am very excited for what is to come for the rest of 2019 if that has been my first half of the year! Please take a look at some of the photos I have managed to capture from my events this year.
I will be in touch soon.
Ramona x
