The art of shopping, part one

October 13, 2016November 12, 2020 | Anna Cull

I mentioned in my last post that I’ve been revamping some of the images in my Etsy shop, so I thought I’d show you a few of my favourites. These were all created with digital trickery : ) and each picture is a combination of three different photographs: the original painting + my black travel easel + the photo that inspired the painting (in the background & slightly out of focus to give a kind of ‘depth of field’ effect)…

Sidetracked, 12 x 12 inches — ‘Sidetracked’ ~ railway tracks and golden sand near Koekohe Beach in Otago

'Boatsheds' (10 x 30 inches), the Banks Peninsula coastline and boat sheds along Duvauchelle Bay near Akaroa, NZ — ‘Purple Haze’ ~ Banks Peninsula coastline with a hint of the boat sheds along Duvauchelle Bay. SOLD

'Thursday, Avon River' (30 x 20 inches), ducks swimming on the Avon River in Christchurch, NZ — ‘Thursday, Avon River’ ~ ducks swimming on the Avon River, Christchurch. SOLD

'Riding the Falls' (16 x 12 inches), a Huka Falls jet boat on the Waikato River, NZ — ‘Riding the Falls’ ~ a Huka Falls jet boat on the Waikato River

The other idea I’ve been playing around with is showing how my paintings could look on walls in different rooms. Because our house is not very big and much too untidy for a photo shoot, I decided to draw the furniture instead of photographing it. This is the first of what I hope will be a series of illustrated ‘in situ’ paintings…

'Moon Over the City' (16 x 12 inches, unframed), living room illustration — ‘Moon Over the City’ ~ living room ‘in situ’ illustration ~ private collection

One of the other things I mentioned last week was that I have discovered the wonderful world of Polyvore… but I’ll tell you more about that and how I came to be involved in yet another social media site (I know, I know…) in my next blog post. Thanks for reading.

Paint

August 26, 2016July 25, 2022 | Anna Cull

“Life is a blank canvas, and you need to throw all the paint on it you can.” Danny Kaye

Dandelion Study #1 – acrylic on canvas, 100 x 100 mm, 2016. Available on Etsy. — Dandelion Study #1 – acrylic on canvas, 100 x 100 mm, 2016. SOLD

AnnaCullDandelionStudy2WP — Dandelion Study #2. SOLD

Smoke without fire

August 24, 2016July 25, 2022 | Anna Cull

‘Smoke Without Fire’ is a little do-over canvas that sat in a corner of the studio for ages before I decided to have another go at it. It turned out okay this time, so I’ve listed it on Etsy. It comes with the little wooden display easel shown in the photo.

The SPF online auction

April 19, 2016May 2, 2016 | Anna Cull

But first a few words about the SPFs. These paintings are experimental studies that mark a bit of a turning point in my art journey. While I was painting them, I realised something about the way I have been working and about the way I want to work in the future. I plan to start working more in series (I’ll tell you more about that another day) and these paintings don’t really fit in with those plans. The SPFs have served their purpose and now I want to do something a bit special with them. I had a lot of fun creating them and I would love to find them a nice home (or homes) to live in… and I’m hoping you can help.

If you would like to brighten up a room with an original artwork ⛱ , you can place a bid by getting in touch via my Contact page. Don’t forget to let me know which painting you are bidding on: SPF 15 or SPF 30 (or both). I would like to cover the cost of the canvas and paint but I will accept the highest bid, whatever it may be. If you live in the Christchurch area, I will deliver your painting(s) to you in person (no extra charge). If you live elsewhere and would like me to estimate the cost of shipping, or if you have any other questions about the paintings, please get in touch via my Contact page.

The paintings are 505 x 505 mm (20 x 20 inches), unvarnished, on deep-profile stretched canvas. The SPF online auction ends 30th April. I will be in touch with the winner and post the results here in early May. The winning bid(s) will not be disclosed.

UPDATE: Congratulations to Gillian. The two SPF paintings are yours! I’m really glad they’re going to stay together. Thank you very much : )

No rules

November 10, 2015July 5, 2016 | Anna Cull

As You Like It – acrylic on canvas, 102 x 102 mm, 2015. Sold.

“There are no rules. That is how art is born, how breakthroughs happen. Go against the rules or ignore the rules. That is what invention is about.” Helen Frankenthaler

This is a quirky little something I made with paint left over from ‘Ebb and Flow’ (I hate to waste paint once I’ve mixed it). I’m calling it ‘As You Like It’ because I’m not sure which way up it goes (see the slideshow below for the options) and also because I think it looks a bit like the backdrop to a Shakespearean play…

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Traces of reality

November 6, 2015September 23, 2019 | Anna Cull

Ebb and Flow – acrylic on canvas, 150 x 305 mm, 2015. SOLD

“There is no abstract art. You must always start with something. Afterward you can remove all traces of reality.” Pablo Picasso

I have just finished a large abstract painting commission (this isn’t it ― I’m saving that post for another day). I love commissions. It was, however, quite an intense experience. I don’t know why but I find abstracts a lot more challenging than painting landscapes or birds or flowers… I guess that’s because the painting itself is the frame of reference rather than a photograph or something you can see in front of you. Which means that anything is possible. And I find that difficult, possibly because there are too many options. Some people are happy to start with an idea, a mood, a colour, a texture… I guess I’ve discovered that I like starting with an image. Of something. Anything. Anything at all.

Nugget Point, reference image (cropped, edited and flipped 180°)

So I decided to work on a little abstract just to move some paint around : ) and used a photograph taken a couple of years ago on the Otago coast as my starting point ― a photo of waves crashing against the rocks. It’s an image I’ve been wanting to paint for ages because the place left such an impression on me. I’ve called the painting ‘Ebb and Flow’ and it will be available for purchase in the very near future.