Artbymarion - Joy of Colour: 2019

A second calm painting in blues and turquoises, with orange highlights to draw you in and take you around the painting. A sister painting to Wandering in Space and Time

Close-up

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14 November 2019

CALM WITH A TOUCH OF DRAMA

Blue is a calming colour. I wonder if this is the same for turquoise?

Wandering in Space and Time

by Marion Hedger

30cmx30cm (12x12")

Acylic on Panel

Available

I must have been in a calm mood when painting this painting. the different tints of turquoise set off by that pale lilac adds depth and mood, while the orange provides a touch of contrasting heat which leads the eye around.

Close-ups

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13 November 2019

3 new totem pieces making a debut

3 New pieces making their debut at the Windsor Contemporary Art Fair last weekend. Here they are on the stand (Not a great photo but gives you an idea of their size, 120x40cm). I have yet to take proper individual photos and they are not up on my website yet.

It was interesting working in this long format. Your brain has to think different to get a good composition on a narrow long canvas. I found it very challenging (if you put the three together this would be my largest painting to date) but I loved painting this. When I thought I had finshed them, I hung them in the lounge so I could look at them before deciding if there was anything more needed. There was. The turquoise oil pastel did the trick and finished them off nicely.

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13 October 2019

Photofunia Sunday Fun -

Come and Discover With Me in a museum setting. I love using the app photofunia to see the art in different settings. Of course, it is no where near as large as this but I do take commissions... 😁😁😁

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11 October 2019

New Work - Don't Stop Until You Arrive

DON'T STOP UNTIL YOU ARRIVE

by Marion Hedger

Acrylic on canvas

50x60cm

Wander through this mythical landscape with echoes of your travels. Where to go? over or round? over here or over there?

The layers on layers of this painting adds richness and depth keeping you wondering where to wander to next with your eyes.

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10 October 2019

Not one, but two works in progress

I started two new works in progress yesterday, one large and one that's more my normal size. I'm working side by side on them so so far they have the same colours and similar mark making.

The larger one was given a coat of textured gesso (normal gesso with plaster added) because I love working on a textured ground. The smaller one.....

I fully intended to make a time lapse video but my tablet had run out of charge. I had the urge to paint and couldn't wait to get going with the paint. I started differently than normal - using a brush and not a palette knife and placing black marks for the composition, ensuring they were all of different sizes and led the eye around the canvas. I had a good couple of hours where the paint just seemed to flow. That is a glorious feeling.

The next stage is deciding where to take it with thicker paint and more control. I'm hoping that I can keep some of this spontaneity going, and now that my battery is charged, maybe I will do a timelapse.

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08 October 2019

Lyon Contemporary Art Fair

Lyon Contemporary Art Fair Stand

Last week end saw me at the Art3f Lyon Contemporary Art Fair with my largest painting to date taking pride of place.

It's so hard to photograph the stand as it is 3metres deep and hard to get a good vantage point to photograph the walls properly. At the English art fairs I am used to having a longer stand where the side walls are 1m or 1.5meters long which I find is a much better way to display the art. But the smallest art3f stands are 3x3m. I feel it discourages visitors to enter the stand as, although there is 9 linear metres of wall space, it feels quite enclosed.

I have another art fair at Marseille the weekend after next, with the same stand layout so I will have to get used to it LOL. If you are in the area and would like tickets. Contact me

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07 October 2019

New Work - Come and Discover With Me

COME AND DISCOVER WITH ME

Acrylic on panel

40x40cm

Evoking the desire the go exploring and see what is around the next bend, hill, mountain is expressed and suggested with colour and shapes in this abstract landscape.

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25 September 2019

Lyon Contemporary Art Fair this weekend.

Start tomorrow evening

If you're in the area come and say Hi.

Still time to get tickets, contact me here

04 September 2019

Over the moon.... Towards New Vistas award

TOWARDS NEW VISTAS

by Marion Hedger

40x40cm, acrylic and mixed media

I'm over the moon. 🙏This abstract has been awarded a 'Special Merit' award in the LightSpaceTime open competition.

Special Merit Award Category – These are the artists and their artwork which we felt could easily have been placed higher but due to the size constraints in each media category, this art was placed in this special category. Any of the Special Merit art, in many cases, is interchangeable with the best art that we selected for the top tiers.

This painting evolved and almost painted itself from the start. I loved what was happening and nearly stopped earlier. I'm glad I kept going as it just got better and better. Note the special touch that my 'brush' of lavender stems created.

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09 August 2019

The Colour Purple / Living in Mystery

My Impressionist landscapes of Provence always contained purple for the obvious reason. Since concentrating on abstracts, I'm using less purple but it can still be found in a few paintings.

I find that it's a good foil to the other colours, often setting them off nicely. Green can really be made to pop with an adjacent patch of purple. It can easily be toned down to a purple grey by adding green, and this is enhances yellows and creams.

LIVING IN MYSTERY

by Marion Hedger

Acrylic on canvas

The Meanings of Purple
"Purple’s rarity in nature and the expense of creating the color and has given purple a supernatural aura for centuries. Purple is also the most powerful wavelength of the rainbow – and it’s a color with a powerful history that has evolved over time. In fact, the origins of the symbolism of purple are more significant and interesting than those of any other color.

If we go back to our pre-historic existence, our ancestors probably never saw a purple fruit, flower, bird, fish - or any living thing - because purple is very rare in nature. This is hard to imagine in today’s connected world. Read more..."
Source: Colour Matters

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07 August 2019

The Colour Blue / Se7en is the Magic Number

I'm immediately drawn to paintings containing the colour blue. There are so many nuances from dark phthaloblue, bright ultramarine and sky blue right through to turquoise. Blue harmonises with all colours and mixes well with white. I'm a fan of ceruleum blue mixed with a dash of white. Do you have a favourite blue?

SE7EN IS THE MAGIC NUMBER

by Marion Hedger

Acrylic on canvas
Palette Knife Painting

The Meanings of Blue
"Blue is the favorite color of all people. It’s nature’s color for water and sky, but is rarely found in fruits and vegetables. Today, blue is embraced as the color of heaven and authority, denim jeans and corporate logos. It is cold, wet, and slow as compared to red’s warmth, fire, and intensity.
Blue has more complex and contradictory meanings than any other color. These can be easily explained by pinpointing by the specific shade of blue. Read more..."
Source: Colour Matters

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05 August 2019

The Colour Red / Searching for Enlightment

I love red, but a little goes a long way. It is a hard colour to paint with.

Too much and it's garish, too dark and it can be dull. It is difficult to lighten as adding white turns it pink, and not many reds make a good pink. Adding yellow can lighten it, but this will send it into the orange tones. For me, there is always a lot of toing and froing with reds, to get that shade 'just right'.

SEARCHING FOR ENLIGHTENMENT

by Marion Hedger

Acrylic on canvas

The Meanings of Red

Red is the color of extremes. It’s the color of passionate love, seduction, violence, danger, anger, and adventure. Our prehistoric ancestors saw red as the color of fire and blood – energy and primal life forces – and most of red’s symbolism today arises from its powerful associations in the past.
Red is also a magical and religious color. It symbolized super-human heroism to the Greeks and is the color of the Christian crucifixion. Red was almost as rare and as expensive as purple in ancient days – a fact that may explain its magic and power. Paradoxically, today’s intense red dyes come from crushed insects (the lac beetle and the cochineal).
Source Colour Matters

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02 August 2019

The Colour Yellow / On The Cusp of Spring

I love the colour yellow. It always gives me a lift and makes me feel happy.

These two paintings were painted last year as spring was starting, maybe it was the daffodils in the garden or the rape seed in the fields. Of course, here in Provence the sunflowers provide lovely yellow fields but in the summer. So perhaps these should be called On the Cusp of Summer.

On The Cusp of Spring 1 and 2.

by Marion Hedger

Acrylic on box canvas

Available

As a bit of fun, I looked up the meaning of yellow:

"Yellow, the color of sunshine, hope, and happiness, has conflicting associations. On one hand yellow stands for freshness, happiness, positivity, clarity, energy, optimism, enlightenment, remembrance, intellect, honor, loyalty, and joy, but on the other, it represents cowardice and deceit. A dull or dingy yellow may represent caution, sickness, and jealousy.
Studies show that the meaning of the color yellow can be warmth, cheerfulness, increased mental activity, increased muscle energy. The color yellow helps activate the memory, encourage communication, enhance vision, build confidence, and stimulate the nervous system."
Source Bourne Creative.

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27 July 2019

Miniature Abstract Paintings in Orange

Generally when I talk to people at trade fairs, there is a misconception that small paintings are quick to do. For me it's quite the opposite, unless I am doing a limited time trial to loosen up. Often there is just as much planning and thought in these small paintings as in larger paintings and per square inch, there can actually be more time involved. It's very satisfying completeing a series of small paintings although coming up with good compositions for all of them can be challenging.

Here are two more from my new series (10 in all) this time in orange colourways.

INTERPLAY 5

15X15cm (6x6")

oil on box canvas

INTERPLAY6

15X15cm (6x6")

oil on box canvas

AVAILABLE

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18 July 2019

Miniature Abstract Oil Paintings

At the moment, I use acrylic to paint most of my abstracts, but sometimes I get the urge to dive into thick luscious oil paint. I think there is just something about digging your palette knife into thick oil paint and laying it on the canvas. I created a set of 6x6 inch paintings on deep canvas as an antidote to some of the larger paintings I had been painting. Some were in reds and others were in oranges.

Here are a couple of the red ones.

INTERPLAY 1

BY MARION HEDGER

Oil

15x15cm on box canvas

INTERPLAY 3

BY MARION HEDGER

Oil

15x15cm on box canvas

AVAILABLE

All my Miniature Treasure range can be seen here

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17 July 2019

Revitalising my Etsy Shop with new work

For the last two years I have been ignoring my Etsy shop while I concentrate on my new direction of abstracts.

I've always had good sales on Etsy, and now I am revitalising it with some of my abstracts and gradually sprucing it up with better photos.

At the moment I have concentrated on adding my smaller format art on paper and on box canvasses. I have also added a some self-print files where you can download electronic version of my art to print at home for your own use.

Pop over to my Etsy shop and have a look. Your feedback will be valued.

Works on Paper available here. Ready to frame, with a white mount, for a standard 24x30cm frame.

Oil canvas abstracts available here.

Digital Prints available here

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15 July 2019

Honourable Mention for Breathing Mountain

Breathing Mountain

by Marion Hedger

Acrylic

80x80cm on 4cm box canvas

I was thrilled and honoured to receive an honourable mention in the LightSpaceTime 555 exhibition. Although I didn't make it into the top ten, I did make it into the top 20 in the painting category. Thank you LightSpaceTime for the honour. Click here to see the winners

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13 July 2019

Totem Paintings in Progress

Two of the for totem painting

30x60cm each
Contact me with any questions

I've had the idea to do some totem (long and thin) for a while now. I so many blank canvases and partily finished canvasses I couldn't justify new ones of the right size for yet another project trial.

I found four unfinished 30x60cm canvasses, which would make two 30x120cm (12"x48") paintings, and the project was born.

I drew a different design on all four of them and painted right over what was there, with similar colours on all of them. The above photos show how far I have got and I felt they are nearly done.

However, I don't like them.

I will reveal how I am changing them in a future post.

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11 July 2019

Taking Risks

Work in Progress

40x40cm on box canvas

Acrylic

Contact me

Sometimes you nee to take risks to challenge yourself. This one started off conventionally with large blocks of colour, orange and light blue, and then smaller different blocks of colour on top letting some of the first colour show through.

I looked at it and thought "Why not go for it and drew some thick black lines and a circle . From there it gradually evolved to where it is now going more instinctively. I didn't overthink it and just went with the flow.

I enjoyed myself painting it and I am pleased with how it has turned out so far. Still some work to do, mainly tidying it up and looking at values, but it worked out quicker than many more of my more 'thoughtful' paintings.

Is the motto, "When it feels right, just go for it?"

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13 June 2019

The Perks of Art Fairs

Making art is an isolating business. It's very nature means, that on the whole, art making is a sole activity spending lots of time alone creating.

Participation in art fairs is one way of meeting other artists and potential collectors, making you feel part of the community. It's a way for the general public to actually meet the person behind the art and allow the artist to communicate and show their human side.

One of the lovely bonuses for the artist, is receiving nice compliments and having some quite off the wall conversations. I am sharing some of the lovely comments I received at the Sussexwest art fair.

I appreciate each and everyone of these comments and it always gives me a lift that people have taken the time to leave one. It's also satisfying to know that my art has touched someone.

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31 May 2019

A Nice Encounter

I returned home from two back to back artfairs in Newbury and Goodwood about a week and a half ago to a non-functioning internet, grrrhh which made even sending and receiving emails difficult, and forget about updating any sites and social media! The good news is, it started functioning again a couple of days ago, so fingers crossed I can now catch-up with all those things essential to being an artist.

Art Fair Teething Problems

Both fairs were in new locations and the footfall could have been better at both. At Newbury the organisers gave out the wrong postal code and there were serious roadworks happening which also made it difficult to get to the venue. At Goodwood, the signage to the event was poor and the organisers gave the wrong closing times on some of the printed media. Such are the joys of attending art fairs. The true joy, of course, is in the comraderie of the artists and the lovely conversations with the art lovers.

A Nice Encounter

One nice moment was when a gentleman, who was drawn to the colours in my paintings, stood in my stand looking for quite while studying them intently. I assumed he was another artist looking for clues on how I painted.

I started talking to him and he told me that he didn’t like abstract art but there was something about mine that drew him in. So we had a long discussion about what had drawn him to my paintings and that owning art is all about liking/loving what you see and wanting to live with it.

I told him about how I try to draw the observer in and keep them ‘entertained’ on closer inspectiion. We had a lovely discussion.

He came back a couple of more times and also showed his wife. Unfortunately, no sale but, perhaps, I have created a chink into his ‘I don’t understand abstract art’ attitude and he will slowly start to appreciate it.

It’s these moments that make the hard work wothwhile.

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30 March 2019

Living in Mystery

LIVING IN MYSTERY

by Marion Hedger

Acrylic and mixed media on canvas

Finished with varnish and

a layer of wax to give a nice sheen that addes additional depth.

80x80cm x4 cm deep

"The contrasting shapes and differences between the solid and ethereal areas can be used as an analogy of the differences in rock and sky or how life works, sometimes very sure and other times more uncertain perhaps when we are trying new things."

Contrasting paint treatement

This painting uses both flat areas of paint and soft scumbled areas to give an interesting contrast.

I used to be a fan of scumbling when I first started using acrylics many years ago, but haven't done any for while. I used to attack the canvas with vigour using a bristle brush barely containing any paint. It'd take a while to get the right effect using one colour on top of another, but I was often away in the 'zone' and wore down many a paint brush. The beautiful soft effect and colours achieved was worth the time. I couldn't quite get back to the zen part with this painting but like the ethereal effect which contrasts nicely with the more opaque and trasparent paint areas.

PS
I still have some of those paint brushes laying about - what can I say, I'm a hoarder.

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23 March 2019

New Work - Going Larger

BREATHING MOUNTAIN

80X80cm (32x32inch) on 4cm deep box canvas

I am gradually adding my new paintings exhibited at the Surrey Contemporary Art Fair. This is one of the larger ones at 80x80cm. I have to be practical when working larger to make sure the painting doesn't exceed 80cm so it can fit in the car. I can go a little longer, so I might try a few longer ones for the next art fair.

In this painting I was trying to move towards using larger blocks of colour, with good contrast between the lighter areas and darks. The jewel colours of turquoise and orange intially draw your eye in but the sublety in the darks as well as the whites, keep you entertained. Here are some close-ups to show you the details:

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21 March 2019

Winding Down after Surrey Art Fair

After the Surrey Contemporary Art Fair last week end, I'm taking a few days to wind down. We drove back in one hit (15hours) with my husband doing the major part of the driving. It was the first time I had driven since my hand op at the end of July so I was hesitant to drive, but I found it OK for short periods. it was all motorway driving, so not much strain on my hand. We were going to overnight near Lyon but, as that is only just over 4 hours from home, the temptation to plough on and sleep in our own be was too great.

I started attending art fairs this time last year at the same venue, Sandown Park Racecourse, and have since exhibited at Reading, Windsor and Cannes. They are large organised venues with the stands provided and prepared for the art.

The English art fairs have a great buzz to them and the comraderie between the exhibitors is great, with everyone cheering everyone else on and being happy when they make a sale (even happier when you make your own sale of course). The Cannes art fair did not have the same level of friendship between the exhibitors, but as that is the only one I've attended in France, I shall reserve judgement. One thing they all have in common is that the food is lousy and expensive but I've solved my coffee addiction by taking my own hot water and coffee.

Last weekends fair was the worst one for me for sales out of all of them, a lot of interest. I have three more booked for the year, so I will assess at the end of the year. It seemed to be a mixed bag with some people doing OK but many also not selling much.

I do enjoy speaking to the art lovers who attend, and as the fairs are my only direct contact with potential customers, it's a good way to make contact in a friendly environment.

The amount of art and variety of art (all good as the artists are vetted first) is truly wonderful to see, so it is worth making the effort to attend as a visitor and spend a couple of hours looking at art and talking to the artists about their art and what type of art you like.

I am at Newbury and Goodwood in May and at Windsor in November. If you would like advance tickets to any of them, sign up to my newsletter as I send out invitations to all my subscribers before each fair.

Leave a comment if you would like more information about the fairs.

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