Art Dubai 2010

So last night was the VIP Patrons night which I was luck enough to get an invite to. It was an amazing night with a real buzz and fantastic food and drink provided by Jumeirah Group. There was, as always, some really inspirational art on show that made my just want to come home and get my paints out. It also always makes you think a bit differently about materials to use in your art, for example the airfix figures and barbed wire that was used in one piece of artwork. Really the possibilities are endless! Go take a look if you get a chance or if you are elsewhere int eh world make sure you visit an art fair near you!

Art Dubai

So the 4th Year of Art Dubai starts this week and I am lucky enough to have VIP tickets to the patrons evening on Tuesday night which I am very much looking forward to. Will have to get dressed up and check out what new art they have this year. There's always some interesting stuff there and some food for inspiration. I'll try and get some pictures and/or video to post.

Creating Texture

I use a lot of texture in my paintings but I don't use gesso as it is expensive and too thin. Read my article on creating your own texture to find out what I use for the base of my paintings.

Art Fairs in Dubai and In General

Is it me or have art fairs just become an excuse to shock or create weird and wacky stuff just to create a stir? I talk to so many people who don't know where to buy original art - just simple, one off pieces for their homes. But in terms of exhibitions and fairs it seems almost like painting is going out of fashion these days, it's all about installations and other kind of 'trendy' stuff :-) nothing wrong with them but people just seem to be trying to push the boundaries of what everyday people think is art but throwing something radical in just to stir it up and maybe create controversy. I guess it depends on what the purpose of the exhibition is, to sell or to entertain or maybe even to shock. DUCTAC have an exhibition of this kind starting on 11th March. Will be interested to go and have a look at this anyway.

If anyone does want simple, original art for their home then maybe come take a look at Arte in Times Square Centre on Friday 12th March, midday til 7pm.

Colour Wheel

One of the essentials of being a good artist (I think!) is to know the colour wheel and at least some of the basics of colour theory. I will be posting an article on this shortly but in the meantime here is a basic colour wheel.

New Article Published on Using Acrylic Paints

I have had a new articled published on eZine Articles entitled Acrylic Painting Tips - 11 Tips to Help Artists. You can find it here.

New Leisure Website

So the first version of my new website is up and running. It is all still a work in progress but I have decided to release it as it is to kick things off. It has lots of ideas about leisure activities, focusing on arts and crafts, golf and health and wellbeing to start off with.