Artist of the week - Melanie Barrett

Our Artist of the week is Melanie Barrett. After graduating with a degree in Fine Art from the University of Newcastle upon Tyne in 2003, Melanie went on to obtain a Masters in Painting from Wimbledon School of Art in 2004. Since then she has been continuing to paint and draw, focusing on portraiture, and in particular the narrative within painting. I particularly like this landscape painting of Melanie's....especially with all the recent snow, ice and cold weather.....this is a timely reminder of the promise of Spring to come. I love the light streaming through the trees.

Melanie has taught Art in schools in Mexico and Uganda, and to date has exhibited in various venues in Newcastle, Hackney, Kings Cross, the Discerning Eye Exhibition 2003, London Art Fair 2005, and in Glasgow for the regional finals of Channel Five's Big Art Competition.

To see more of Melanie's work on Affordable British Art, click HERE

Artist of the Week - Angela Arnold

Our Artist of the week is Angela Arnold. Angela spent most of her youth on the Continent: born in Germany, she has also lived in France, Spain, Holland, Belgium...finally settling in Scotland in 1976. Angela says:
"I have been painting in South Aberdeenshire since 2001, inspired by the local land- and seascape: the view of big skies and changeable seas from the cliffs of coastal Kinneff, where I live, or the deep red earth of the Mearns."

The painting shown is an atmospheric depiction of winter at its most picturesque, with snow sculpted into powerful drifts and my little cottage just visible."
A very apt depiction of the snowy weather at the moment


Angela started out as a writer, with two books published (on psychological astrology, which she also practises), as well as occasional poetry. For thirteen years she ran a smallholding in Aberdeenshire, and then worked for several years as a hands-on garden designer. She came to painting a bit later in life, and is self-taught - "....as much by design as default: I just love experimenting and discovering my own techniques. Painting to me is a challenge, a journey, and each work seems to proceed along its own path, often taking me by surprise.
In my paintings I try to capture both stillness and motion (often linked with the emotion evoked) – and maybe these are not so much opposites as two sides of the same coin, seeking the core of the subject. I also produce vibrant abstracts and most recently I have been experimenting with stark black and white, rather minimalist, painting.

A lot of my work is done in acrylic on board, rather than on canvas, calling for a different kind of technique. I have developed a method of mounting board on an integral frame and the finished product looks like a box canvas, with painted sides, ready to hang - or to frame, if you wish."

To see more of Angela's work on Affordable British Art, click HERE

Artist of the week - Jeannie Zelos

Jeannie was born and still lives in North Norfolk. She says " ...with beautiful scenery full of traditional woodlands, vast beaches and huge skies. Why move?!
I've been painting for a number of years now and extending my repertoire of materials as time progresses and I delve further into the world of art.I describe my style as naive, and myself as a Colourist. My work has very vibrant colour ranges, often not what you would expect but it works!
Art can be a solitary pursuit and since 2006 I've been running a free arts forum for artists and people interested in art, just type my name and forum into google and you'll find it. I've learned so much from other artists there, and hopefully we have all benefited from contact with others.
I paint in a variety of mediums from watercolours through to encaustic, a method used over 2,000 years ago. For me art is a journey and by not restricting myself to one media I have the freedom to take my art to a range of possibilities. Over the last few years I have extended my experience via personal study and professional tuition and now use watercolours, soft pastels, oil pastels, acrylics, oils, and latest is the encaustic (beeswax) paints. I'm currently using the encaustics most of the while, seeking to reach the very essence of the subject through pure abstraction, and find that the beeswax - maybe because its such an organic material- works really well for this. "

To see more of Jeannie's work on Affordable British Art, click HERE

Artist of the Week - Peter Williams

Our Artist of the week is Peter Williams. Peter is a self taught UK artist, working out of his studio on the Suffolk coast where he lives with his long term partner Jenny and large German Shepherd dog.

Of his work, Peter says:
"I use many different media including pastel, coloured or graphite pencil and gouache but I am particularly well known for watercolour work. Blending diffused colour with confident composition and intricate detail, I am able to achieve a unique vibrancy unequalled by many other watercolourists.

Having always had immense interest in the great outdoors, animals, wildlife and particularly horses, I have most recently become best known for my haunting, ephemeral Native American portraits.
I don’t try to be historically accurate, but attempt to portray palpable and arresting emotions, suspending reality to present the viewer with the wild, unchecked passions and stoic serenity of Native America.

Born in 1952 I had a varied working life which included the regular British Army, college tutor, computer analyst and lorry driver. Throughout all of these times I always found time to create art of some kind in my spare time. In 2002 I took the life changing step of becoming a full time artist. I was the feature artist for Hertfordshire Life magazine before moving to the East coast of Suffolk in 2005. I expected to make my living here from local landscapes and coastal scenes. However I soon realized I would be better off finding a more niche area of the art market and decided to exploit my passion for the old West and Native America. I haven’t looked back since. I have had quite a lot of success selling prints and originals in the USA but have also been pleasantly surprised to find many collectors here in the UK. Of course I still create all other genre when the mood takes me, particularly wildlife and horses, and work to commission whenever requested. "

See more of Peter's work on Affordable British Art by clicking HERE

Artist of the Week - Cherie Sullivan

Cherie Sullivan is our artist of the week this week.

A contemporary Scottish artist, her bold, distinctive, vibrant works are influenced by colour and nature. Preferring to work from photographs, rather than from life, Cherie can often be found photographing flowers and fruit. Some of these photos then, in turn, inspire her paintings. Working with acrylics, oils or in mixed media on box canvas, Cherie’s paintings are a bright and vivid representation of the natural world around us.

Cherie exhibits across Scotland, and has many works in private collections around the world. NHS Fife recently purchased 4 of Cherie’s paintings to be displayed in the Queen Margaret Hospital, Dunfermline.

“I enjoy taking macro shots of flower centres…these interesting photographs are often semi abstract by nature. I like to concentrate on their stamens, cropping the photos to get exactly the image I want. Once cropped, these images then form the basis for my paintings.
For my fruity paintings I use the same process, but tend to concentrate on the negative spaces between the fruits.”

Click HERE to see more of Cherie's work

Artist of the week - Kosana Marton

Kosana Marton is our new featured Artist of the week. Kosana is a Scottish artist based in Fife. Originally from East Kilbride, she studied art and design in Glasgow after completing her secondary education and, after a break from the arts, returned to study fine art at Edinburgh College of Art in 1991.

She takes her inspiration from nature; surroundings, colour, light and texture all play a part in helping her to create contemporary paintings using acrylic, mixed media and watercolour. Her subject matter varies dependent on her mood at the time, ranging from landscapes to abstract. She also enjoys figurative work like the one shown here.

She doesn’t work from sketch books, preferring to work from reality, photographs or memories. Her paintings start as a rough idea in her mind’s eye when a basic colour palette is also decided. However, from that point on, the rest of the painting evolves spontaneously on the canvas until completion.

Kosana has her work in private collections throughout the UK, Europe, USA and New Zealand. The NHS also purchased 9 paintings for permanent display the Queen Margaret Hospital, Dunfermline. She exhibits throughout the year at various venues/galleries.

Click HERE to see more of Kosana's work on Affordable British Art

Artist of the Week - Claire Losada

This week, we have Claire Losada as our AOW. Claire says:
"I am a self representing artist and mostly my work represent my own moods and emotions.

I use my art as a vehicle to convey my emotional states and well being, through use of colour and application of chosen media. Vivid hues translate to give a representation of moods that enlighten the onlooker, where no explanation is necessary.

The paintings, of varying subject matter are set to convey messages through the very essence of their simplicity. The use of subdued ochre hues, appear unsettling purely through the use of colour but a sunset or a sunrise can depict a sense of harmony and serenity and an enviable state of emotion.

These paintings are intended to communicate and reach out to the onlooker, invoking a real emotion. At that moment they are influenced by the artwork, it is having an effect on their mood and state of mind. It is communicating with the onlooker by the very essence of its existence, borne from the emotions and mood of its creator.

The vehicle of paint has been used as a way of expressing myself and venting emotions experienced through the stresses of everyday life. Experiencing a roller coaster of emotions, I sought a vehicle for communicating and retaining my sanity that turned sometimes negative emotions, into something productive and positive.

Some of us have seen sanity, if only in a vision but for me, my vision is communicated through my work.

To see more of Claire's work on Affordable British Art, click HERE

Artist of the week - Liz Lees

Well, this week we have Liz Lees as our Artist of the week.Liz paints people pictures and textured Oil paintings which se describes as "One person’s look at life through visual images. Every picture has a story." Liz has been drawing and painting all her life. Her first work to be noticed were the little houses she drew on the wall beside her bed in a hotel while the family were on holiday.
Deciding not to be influenced by a formal art education, Liz studied Zoology and Botany enjoying the concentration of detailed observation and drawing.
From an early age Liz was involved in theatre, influenced by her ventriloquist father. She gained her Stage Designers and Actors Equity card working at North East Theatre in Aberdeen.
In 1984 she achieved a Post Graduate Diploma from Guildford School of Acting and Dance.
On moving to Manchester to pursue her acting career she performed in television in Coronation Street, Emmerdale, Brookside and on stage at the Royal Exchange and on the Edinburgh Fringe.
She formed her own theatre company Green Light Theatre writing, directing and performing in shows with environmental themes across the North West of England. She also developed training programmes passing on the skills she has learnt in performance, set design and writing.
Liz was influenced by the multicultural area of Old Trafford where she lived in Manchester, to create her quirky people pictures. Frequent visits to North Wales beaches and mountains brought a contrast to the city and in her work.

To see more of Liz's work, click HERE

Artist of the Week - Lindi Kirwin

Lindi Kirwin is our Artist of the Week this time. Lindi is a professional Artist, exhibiting in many galleries and selling her work to private collectors, worldwide.

Based at her studio on the 3rd floor at Vernon Mill in Stockport, Lindi’s contemporary paintings are inspired by many of the Old Masters, and of today’s artists, Jenny Saville; yet in contrast to her morbid reflection of the human form, she admires the romantic beauty of Pino Daeni’s style. Egon Schiele is also a firm favourite for inspiration.

Lindi’s passion of figurative work is tastefully provocative and sensual. The image shown is called "Alone in the Dark"; her land/seascapes are vibrant and atmospheric; all these paintings are executed in her specialism of dry-brush acrylic, using no water. However, it is evident that she is also recognised for her work in oils and mixed media, and her humorous pen illustrations. She uses her photos and sketches for reference and is also inspired by proverbs, quotes, poetry text, which she will successfully interpret into abstract paintings.

In 2006, she was approached by Dorling Kindersley publishers to use examples of her work in their art books. She has also recently had a very successful partnership with Durer's, producing a highly unusual and individual piece, auctioned for charity and bought by Theo Paphitas - of Dragon's Den fame.

Click HERE to see more of Lindi's work on Affordable British Art

Artist of the Week - Diane Jennings

This week, we have Diane Jennings as our Artist of the Week. Diane says: "love to paint bright, bold paintings to brighten any wall and I also paint quieter,calmer, more relaxing paintings too!
If you would like to see ANY of my work in more detail please get in touch and I will email you close ups of the work.

I am at my happiest when creating art,to see the painting develop before me is exciting each and every time!

To be creative is the very essence of who I am and it is my passion "

As well as creating her own portfolio of work, Diane also teaches people to paint in her very popular classes called 'Painting My Way' . She is a Professional Associate of the SAA (Society for All Artists) which means she carries their endorsement as a tutor and demonstrator.
To have a look at Diane's art, click HERE
(There's a link to Diane's "Painting My Way" website on the page if you're interested in her painting classes)