Light Space & Time Online Art Gallery is extremely pleased to announce that Gabrielle Bill has been named as the Gallery’s new featured artist and she will now be promoted by the gallery for the next 14 days in the gallery’s Artist Showcase.
Gabrielle is an award-winning artist who spends her time between Dorset in the South West of England and the French Alps. Gabrielle was selected as 1 of the top twelve finalists in the gallery’s 18th Solo Art Exhibition Series. The placement in this competition qualified her art to be showcased in this feature.
Gabrielle’s Artist Showcase feature will be promoted to over 350+ major news outlets, with inclusion on Google News & Bing News. In addition, the gallery will also be featuring and promoting her artwork in the gallery’s various social media networks for further exposure.
Below are Gabrielle’s Artist Biography, Artist Statement and 5 images that were submitted to this competition.
Artist Biography
Gabrielle spends her time between Dorset in the South West of England and the French Alps. She specializing in oil on canvas, images painted often at large scale including the figure and botanical images. Her love of creating something magical on canvas started at a very early age. Between school and Art College she worked and travelled living in Europe, Hong Kong, and Australia where she carried a sketch book at all times until she had the opportunity to accomplish her dream of going to Art College, once her youngest child was at school.
Since graduating in Fine Art, she hasn’t stopped working and exhibiting. She has had a number of solo shows in Milan, Brussels, Gstaad, and the Alps, as well as in London and other galleries in UK. As well as taking part in on line exhibitions, she has also exhibited many times at the Mall galleries London, as well as with other group shows, articles often written.
Her time establishing and running a local Pop Art Gallery was certainly hard work, especially all the advertising etc. but was so worthwhile. Not only in the selling of her work but also in the social aspect of meeting artistically minded people, and forging good relationships with the wider community. The next showing of her work is at the’ Picture this Art Gallery’ Bournemouth in July 2021. She has also won several awards including 2nd prize in the Nadia Waterfield Gallery exhibition earlier this year.
Gabrielle’s main artistic influences through her career have been the works of Degas, especially for the series Women Bathing, for the way he portrays the figure; the Scottish Colourists in particular FCB Cadell for his use of bold colour; Peter Doig for his mark making and the story he portrays in his work; Georgia O’Keeffe for her dramatic way of depicting flowers and the Spanish still life painters for their dark back grounds and their use of light where it hits the subject.
Gabrielle’s philosophy has always been to keep working no matter what and not to be deterred. Her favourite quotes are from Georgia O’Keeffe –“Whether you succeed or not is irrelevant - there is no such thing, making your unknown known is the important thing” and from Andy Warhol – “Don’t think about making art, just get it done, let everyone else decide if it is good or bad, whether they love it or hate it, while they are deciding, make even more art.”
Her goal and aspirations are to create work that though on the surface uplifts the spirits in this difficult time, also has a narrative for the viewer to interpret as their own. Of course, she also seeks recognition!
Artist Statement
My work is all about working directly from nature whether it be from the figure or a botanical setting or landscape en plein aire, or from detailed drawings from my sketchbook. Exploring where the light falls on the subject and exaggerating this effect brings me great joy. Spending time between the Alps and Dorset UK, painting mainly in oils on canvas, with images depicted often at large scale is what I am about.
Since graduating in Fine Art, I haven’t stopped working and exhibiting, gathering inspiration from a plethora of experiences of living abroad - in Italy, France and Belgium, and from my many visits to Nepal, as well as India and Sri Lanka. My work in the last year of Covid has included smaller en plein aire pieces, alongside more studio-based larger pieces that I am more known for. The joy of nature and the bringing together of the life form and botanical images, create a magical place of contemplation and meditation., which I feel we all need in this time of uncertainty. When creating a piece, mark making and depth of field is all-important, where the images grow, change and develop on the canvas. Exploring colour and form becomes an exciting new but sometimes exhausting and challenging experience! I find that quite often things from my subconscious reveal themselves in my paintings without me realizing. Worry’s I did not realize I had.
Typically, I work by first sifting through images either sketched or photographed where I have captured a fleeting image that could inspire the start of a new painting. The next stage often includes the life model. Once I have two or three lightly sketched figures on the canvas, my imagination gets working. Typically, I will use a loose acrylic paint to mark in an idea roughly, often taking time to get the right feel before I continue with oil paint, again loosely applied, working into it sometimes with charcoal, slowly but surely tightening up some areas and leaving other areas free and undefined. During the building up of layers, an image starts to appear and takes on an existence and personality of its own. Recently whilst living in the Alps, I re-visited my love of working outside in the fresh air for about 3 hours, 4 days a week. A good exercise and practice, though jolly cold at times. I would have to dress up very warmly as the temperature was often down to minus 10, I like the challenge of creating whilst battling against the elements.
However, looking like a Michelin man in multiple layers was not the most attractive look and painting with rubber gloves over fleece inners was a challenge on its own. After having produced about 15 small paintings on canvas panels, I realized that to frame these was going to be expensive so I am now framing my own small paintings. A tough learning curve but easier than expected, luckily not taking up too much of my painting time - it all fits in rather well!
I have also taken on commissions during the Covid lock-down period; I painted three portraits and some landscapes alongside my usual bigger works, as well as giving some private painting classes when allowed by the restrictions. Taking time to practice by sketching, whether it be with charcoal, paint, pastel or visiting art shows and sculpture parks is an all-important part of my artistic journey. I feel so lucky to have this passion in my life even though it is a sort of compulsive disorder some might argue!
Gabrielle’s website is www.gabriellebill.co.uk.
