Ever wondered what happened on a painting before it was finished – how it looked along the way? I wrote a while back about knowing when a painting is finished but sometimes it’s hard for me to remember where it began, and quite how many stages it passed through on the way. So I thought […]

It seems as soon as I have a rhythm to my day, it changes! When I first started painting again when my children were younger I found the day could so easily get swallowed up with the luxury (? I know! ) of doing domestic tasks in peace and quiet… These days I try to […]

"Self delusion is what makes art possible"... Brian Rutenberg joins us to discuss failed paintings amidst the glorious joy of making wonderfully pointless art that teaches us more about being human.

Anyone who says painting is easy has clearly never tried. Each mark is the result of a myriad different decisions, some are conscious and some are led by intuition. Which builds through knowledge and practice. One of the hardest things when I started painting was getting over the idea that I had to know it […]

A treasured glimpse inside the colourful and inspiring sketchbooks of Scottish artist Barbara Rae.

"Self delusion is what makes art possible"... Brian Rutenberg joins us to discuss failed paintings amidst the glorious joy of making wonderfully pointless art that teaches us more about being human.

Nicholas Wilton's CVP - is it worth it?

A treasured glimpse inside the colourful and inspiring sketchbooks of Scottish artist Barbara Rae.

What is your optimum comfort level? Do you work well under a bit of pressure or would you rather stay just where you know?

The idea for this episode was sparked by the book "Coaching the Artist Within" by Eric Maisel which Alice has been revisiting.

Ask any grown-up and they have often decided that they are either creative or not. Sometimes this happens even younger; from childhood we start to build our own self-image. I wonder what it would take to change that perception? Guests to our house over the summer have been drawn (no pun intended) to my sketchbooks […]

In this special episode Alice and I discuss some of the books that have inspired us over the years. Our choices may seem surprising but we hope they are all enlightening.

Are you ready for the next creative decade? Join as as we discuss how we are both starting the year in a new way....

ukHandmade is an amazing online publication which features artists and makers from many disciplines – find great textiles, jewellers, potters, illustrators and artists. Actually it would be a great starting point if you want to buy unique and special gifts but don’t know where to start. I was thrilled when they got in touch and […]

Has over-thinking in your studio ever frozen you in your tracks? But you also want to bring more consideration to you art than pure intuition? This one is for you!

We all want to make better paintings, get absorbed in the process of creating art and then stand back and discover a masterpiece. Often it doesn’t work quite like that! We can get swamped in the middle stages and easily lose our way, or even motivation to continue. If you recognise that frustration, I hope […]

A treasured glimpse inside the colourful and inspiring sketchbooks of Scottish artist Barbara Rae.

One of the things which helps me in the studio is a ‘mood board’ for my art. It’s good to refresh this and I had become so used to looking at it, that my eyes passed over it and it was no longer serving its purpose. So what’s a mood board? You’re probably familiar […]

A treasured glimpse inside the colourful and inspiring sketchbooks of Scottish artist Barbara Rae.

Making money as an artist has all sorts of views and expectations swirling around it - many of our own making. This week, we’re tackling that most sensitive of topics; money. We didn’t have much of a plan for this episode - what happened was a fascinating conversation about how we view money and why.

If you expect ‘being creative’ is the same as being productive you are expecting too much. Part of the process is simply a conscious awareness. An awareness of surroundings and influences so that you choose which of these are relevant and which you will draw into your work. I have been out of the studio […]

This week, Louise is joined by writer Jonathan Hall, whose first novel was recently published to critical and commercial acclaim. In this episode, we look at the importance of self-belief and the necessity of an unswerving commitment to our creative practice and the crossovers between writing and making art.

This week we’re talking about transitions - those times when our work moves into a new phase.

This time of year always sparks a desire to freshen things up a little; often accompanied by a need to declutter and tidy my home and art studio. This year I’ve been accompanied by the #sparkjoy approach to decluttering of Marie Kondo who has been all over Netflix with a new series. How is this […]

This weekend I completed my Sketchbook in a Day project: a whole sketchbook completed in exactly the same surroundings that I had found so uninspiring at the start of the summer. Yet this time I had no trouble at all finding things I wanted to record; something had happened to shift my visual awareness and […]

Is there any such thing as ‘original’ art?

It seems as soon as I have a rhythm to my day, it changes! When I first started painting again when my children were younger I found the day could so easily get swallowed up with the luxury (? I know! ) of doing domestic tasks in peace and quiet… These days I try to […]

This morning dawned another grey and misty day on Dartmoor. Dartmoor mist is beautiful, but preferably not when it’s supposed to be August. Listening to the radio I heard A.L. Kennedy describe this August’s skies as “grey as a shark’s armpit” which did at least make me laugh out loud… so I pulled my slightly […]

As my own approach to painting abstract art has changed over the last year, this has left me wondering where sketchbooks fit in with the whole picture… If sketchbooks help to plan alternatives, test compositions and colours, how does this fit in with a process where all that discovery, that excavation, happens on the canvas […]

We all want to make better paintings, get absorbed in the process of creating art and then stand back and discover a masterpiece. Often it doesn’t work quite like that! We can get swamped in the middle stages and easily lose our way, or even motivation to continue. If you recognise that frustration, I hope […]

Ask any grown-up and they have often decided that they are either creative or not. Sometimes this happens even younger; from childhood we start to build our own self-image. I wonder what it would take to change that perception? Guests to our house over the summer have been drawn (no pun intended) to my sketchbooks […]

Alice Sheridan: artist. Contemporary abstract paintings for original art at home. Get the finishing touch for modern home style.

Many if not most of these actresses were born many years before myself, but I caught them on film and was wowed by their charm and glamour. The list is by no means intended to be all-inclusive. I selected the actresses using my internal "va-voom"...

One of the things which helps me in the studio is a ‘mood board’ for my art. It’s good to refresh this and I had become so used to looking at it, that my eyes passed over it and it was no longer serving its purpose. So what’s a mood board? You’re probably familiar […]

Tye Sheridan attends "Friday's Child" photocall as part of "Alice Nella Citta" during the 13th Rome Film Fest at Auditorium Parco Della Musica on October 24, 2018 in Rome, Italy.

A Blog by David Paris on Hollywood History, Photography, Movie Stars & Retro Amusement of All Kinds

Abstract landscape paintings