Woah! March flew by! Hope you are all keeping well.
I've been doing some studio Spring cleaning (eugh) and mountains of admin (zzz) but some interesting stuff too. I managed to see a few artist talks and webinars and am continuing to engage with a wonderful worldwide artist community on Instagram. I was so chuffed to hit over 2000 insta followers last month. Thank you all for your support!
Portrait of Clive Myrie ...
Clive Myrie | Oil on Arches paper | 16 x 12"
Sky Arts treated us to an extra mini-series of Portrait Artist of the Week #mypaotw last month where they organise celebrity sitters to sit and have their portraits painted on Facebook Live.
I had the pleasure of painting BBC journalist Clive Myrie and my painting earned me second place with the judges!! It was such a delight hearing Tai Shan Schierinberg call out my name. 🤩 Yay!
“Wonderfully vigorous painting of thoughtful Clive.The colours are rich and gorgeous and the juicy brush-marks conjure up that three dimensional volume of Clive’s face in a really magical abstract way. My sort of painting! ”
On the easel ...
Ellie with banana (work in progress) | oils on Arches paper | 12 x 16"
There is deep human connection in shared stories.
This painting of Ellie is a donation for the Mater Private on Eccles Street where I was a patient. Still a work in progress but I plan to leave much of the background unpainted. Not long to go now and I can ship this off to be scanned and framed.
My hope is that the painting lifts spirits, reminds people of the beauty in everyday moments. Since motherhood I must say my colour palette has gotten quite intense it must be the influence of all those pink glittery and neon toys in the house but I'm loving it. Colour feeds my soul!
At the Mater Private they have artwork on most walls and it certainly aided my recovery. Connection to the outside world is one of the reasons people bring flowers to patients but as they are no longer permitted, paintings are a good way to go.
Exhibiting ...
Expression Days
My artwork 'Oppression' from my series 'Portrait of a Patient' was selected to be part of the Expression Days virtual group exhibition.
Expression Days by Fresenius Kabi is a one-of-a-kind art exhibition that showcases people’s thoughts and feelings on living life with an autoimmune disease.
Click here you would like to vote for my piece which may mean it will be seen by an even wider audience. ❤️
The Great Big Art Exhibition
Firstsite are encouraging all artists around the world to take part in 'The Great Big Art Exhibition' by posting artworks in the front windows of your home for all to see. With the pandemic and lack of access to galleries this is a lovely way to keep community uplifted.
Here is our window featuring artwork by myself and my daughter Ellie.
Check out all the other windows on Insta #thegreatbigartexhibition2021
Commissions ...
You may have noticed I love to paint portraits. For me the best vehicle for exploring emotion is portraiture and particularly in the small abstract moments. It excites me when a painting looks different up close and so I strive to make each colour and each brushstroke slightly different, jigsawing the painting together with a load of little abstract colourful landscapes.
My plate is bit full at the moment and I won't be taking on any new work until the end of June. So if you are considering commissioning a painting, the more notice the better.
Mom (close-up) | Oils on Arches Paper | 16" x 12"
'Sinead's Studio' ...
Check out my private facebook group where I welcome you into my studio and ramble on about my paintings, my processes, my concepts. I'm due a delivery of new Rosemary & Co. brushes in the post so I'm super excited about that! Seriously!
The group is pretty new and I had a few teething issues which I believe have been sorted but pleeeease if you have any issues accessing the group, do let me know!
✨ Other Shiny Things ...
Wow! Well done for reading this far!
Those of you who know me personally will know I am a total hobby queen. Always dropping them and picking them up #squirrel
My current side quests are ... Building a second brain in Notion. Practicing a Chet Baker solo on the guitar. Reading Daily Rituals by Mason Currey. Eating too much sugar. Playing Zelda on the Switch and last but most importantly, entertaining a three-year-old!
That's all for now folks!