New Original Now Available!

Hi there folks just a quick update on what's happening in the studio - Friday saw the completion of this little guy:

An Amur tiger, 16" x 16", pastel on velour

As yet untitled, this painting is now residing at the local framers where it is due to be scanned for the production of limited edition prints and then framed, God willing prints will be available for purchase within the next two weeks.

Working on a new commission and in the process of sketching out a new original ;-)

Take care & God bless

Kerry x

Life in the fast lane!!!

Oh my word has it really been over a year since I last updated my blog? If there was an image of my embarrassed face right now I'd add it to this post, but as there's not I'll brush that last comment under the carpet and move straight on to updating you all with a little of what's been happening during the last 12 months or so......

Okay here we go, my brain really is like a disorganized filing cabinet (more like a bin of information actually) so bare with me as the following things may or may not be in chronological order, okay they most probably wont be in chronological order but hey at least you've been warned! lol:

Earlier in the year I was fortunate enough to be employed as a demonstrator of Unison soft pastels and Fabre Castell pastel pencils at the prestigeous 'Patchings Art Festival' 2010:

While demonstrating at 'Patchings' I was approached by the 'Research & Development' Manager for Caran d'Ache (an art materials manufacturer in Switzerland) and asked if I would like to be involved with the trialing and development of a new pastel product? After quietly debating the pros and cons of such an offer (which must have taken between 3-5 milliseconds as I'm not one for spontaneous decisions lol) I eventually agreed :-) So samples were received, self formulated tests carried out and results emailed back to the Caran d'Ache head-quarters in Switzerland, everyone seemed happy. Now it seems they were far happier with my labours than I first imagined as I have just received an invitation to go to Geneva (all expenses paid) "within the next few months" for the launch of this new product! More news on that real soon :-)

During August I exhibited at the Rutland Birdfair! Sales were excellent and interest high (as was the humidity - it isn't called Rutland Reservoir for nothing! lol)

Sales included the only just released Sole Survivor (having only come from the framers the previous weekend):

Whilst there I received lots of 'celebrity' interest too! Having personal visits from Johnny Kingdom (I ended up wearing Johnny's hat and together we ran off hand in hand through the marquee much to the surprise and cheers of the watching public! lol),
Chris Packham & Simon King:

Wow talk about 'heard it on the grapevine'!!! lol

Whilst exhibiting at events like the yearly Rutland Birdfair I do like to demonstrate my artwork and techniques too, its amazing really that I can be working away concentrating on my painting while being oblivious to the hustle and bustle of the sometimes crowded marquees and the unblinking gazes of onlookers standing behind me - weird or what! lol It's almost like having blinkers on except these blinkers cover my ears too! lol A tap on the shoulder and it's question time, and what amazes me is the variety of questions asked, anything from questions regarding my artwork & techniques to the views I have on conservation & environmental issues (the latter things of which I've never claimed to know about, well not in depth anyway).

This past year has seen the pace of my career as a wildlife artist really hotting up, with next year looking more than promising already - quarterly Wildlife Art Workshops running and bookings already being taken for my Fur & Feather Demonstrations.

I believe God has blessed me with a wonderful creative gift, one which I didn't have to earn but was given and one which I gain great pleasure in sharing with others, but apart from that He's also made it a gift of the heart, my heart which I'm sure reflects a tiny amount of the greatness of His, to be able to bring about inspiration & encouragement in others, and hopefully a glimpse of the wonderful glory of creation that surrounds us all on this tiny fragile planet we call home - its the only one we have so lets work together to make it a better place for us all xxx

Some news involving myself and Simon King OBE coming soon ........... now that should keep you all guessing for a while! lol ;-)

Oh yes and while I still have your attention I'd just like to say that I now intend to update this blog once a month if possible (and you can hold me to that if I don't! lol)

Thankyou for dropping by!
Take care & God bless xx

Siberian/Amur Tiger

Okay I feel as though I'm catching up with my blog now so here's an extra item to keep it ticking over ;-)

Whilst exhibiting at The Rutland Birdfair in August I started a new wildlife painting, it was lovely being able to share my art this way, and the public were genuinely interested and some alomost hypnotised while watching! ha!ha! The feedback from this alone has been wonderful!and progress so far:You can stay up to date on the progress of this painting and others on the 'Studio' page of my website www.kerrynewell.com

Okay that's my 'longer than usual' teabreak over, back off to the studio now :-)

Thanks again for dropping in & bye for now xx

Oh my word this year is whizzing by so fast, as always life is hectic but I thought its about time that I should update my blog while I have a spare five minutes, so with a cup of tea in hand here goes:

From April of this year onwards I was working towards the world renowned Rutland Birdfair, the pressure was on and the workload heavy but boy did I enjoy the excitement that went along with it - fantastic, it really does you good to step out of your comfort zone once in a while and push forward towards a new goal. The weeks seemed to blend together and before I knew it August had arrived, limited edition prints were ordered and required framing was underway, then the nail-biting journey to the Rutland site with cars loaded to the full, then the problem dawned on me (and thankfully it was the only problem) - Rutland is the home of Rutland resevoire, hence high humidity = damp nights!!! Now anyone who works with velour paper knows how it hates moisture, so much so it almost leaps off the drawing board and heads for the nearest door! ha!ha! So an answer had to be found, yep thats right every evening the paintings had to be packed back into the car and taken home again, much to the amusement of 'old hands' who now only hang canvases etc! ha!ha! Apart from this hiccup exhibiting at The Rutland Birdfair was an awesome experience with over 22,800 people visiting over the three days!!

Yep that's Simon King (Wildlife film-maker) collecting his SOLOMON Limited Edition Print :-)

New wildlife paintings that were completed for the exhibition included

BEST FOOT FORWARD:and THREE OF A KIND:But as the saying goes 'time waits for no man' and so I've no time to sit and reflect on what has been too much as I've a new solo exhibition opening tomorrow, commissions for Christmas to be completed and of course my next wildlife projects to work on, oh yes and one more thing (not that I'm likely to forget) the dates have now been set for The Rutland Birdfair 2010!!! So the preparations start all over again on this wonderful rollercoaster ride of living my dream as a wildlife artist - God is good & life is sweet!

Thankyou for taking the time to catch up on my blog! Take care and bye for now xx

'Samsam' finished!

Hi there well this is just a quick update on the Western Lowland Gorilla I've been working on and yes he's finally finished:No time to relax as I have a new commission to start and a couple of new wildlife pieces waiting to be started too!

Thankyou for taking the time to drop by and bye for now!

Twycross Zoo Commission!

Well 2009 is definitley turning out to be a year of wonderful challenges; from a deluge of private commissions and enquiries to a 'gorilla commission' from Twycross Zoo!

Authorization for the gorilla commission was granted with the zoo's intention of auctioning the painting later this year (during September I believe) in aid of the 'Gorilla Conservation Fund'.

Progress so far:

Having had approval for the main photograph I would be working from, a photograph I shot last year of Samsam - one of the zoo's resident male Western Lowland Gorillas, I began the gruelling task, for me the hardest & least enjoyable part, of sketching this hansome young chap, making sure proportions are correct and composition pleasing to the eye. My sketching method leaves alot to be desired and I must keep eraser manufacturers in business all by myself! Once happy with my results, and believe me its hard to please a perfectionist :-), I transferred the completed sketch onto my prepared velour paper and began the enjoyable part of working with my pastels which will hopefully lead to the creation of a finished painting.

So its back to the literal drawing board for me, thankyou for dropping in on my blog and please feel free to leave comments. Bye for now x

The Home of 'Sovereign Prince'

Hi there this is a quick update from a previous post in Aug 08:

During an unforgettable day last Aug I was able to present the wildlife filmaker Simon King with the first limited edition print (1/100) of my then latest painting 'Sovereign Prince' with the understanding that he could either keep it or auction it etc.
Well yesterday I had a lovely surprize - an email from Simon's PA to let me know that Simon kept the print and has it hanging in his home in Somerset!!
Thanks for dropping by and bye for now!