Interview With Artist {Rose Colfer}

Hi pretties!!

How are you all today? Well do I have a treat for you today?! 
I am here with the first in the new series of artist interviews that will be featured weekly on my blog. Each interview will be with a different artist and most often than not it will be a completely different art form too. 

So I am officially opening it up with an interview with an amazing artist (and aunt ) 

Rose Colfer

Tell us a bit about yourself and what kind of art you do.

Hi Ciara, I am a single mother of two grown up daughters and grandmother to two beautiful grandchildren. I work part-time as an office administrator just 5 minutes from home.  I am not a professional artist. Painting is my hobby.  I discovered art about 5 or 6 years ago and began a beginner’s course in watercolours. During this time I was advised to get a book called Drawing on the Right Side of the Brain to help out with my drawing skills. This book thought me so much.  I would highly recommend it to anyone who finds it difficult to draw.  From there I began to do pencil and charcoal sketches and eventually I ventured onto Acrylics which I am still using. Realism is probably the best way to describe what type of art I do. I love Jack Vettriano’s and Edward Hopper’s work, both of whom were realist painters.

How long have you been creating art/have you always been a creative person?

 As long as I can remember I have always been creative and this is thanks to my mother who instilled in us at a young age to be creative. She thought my sisters and I how to knit and sew when we were old enough to grasp the technique.  Over the years I have created Aran sweaters, winter woollies for my two girls, crochet quilts for my grandchildren, toys etc. I have only discovered the art of drawing and painting in the last 5 or 6 years but I know it will be a lifetime hobby as I love it passionately.

What are the most important lessons you have learned through creating art?

The most important lesson I have learned through creating art is to keep doing it as much as you can.  Don’t let one unsatisfactory painting put you off, just keep on doing it. The satisfaction you get from a painting done well is so worth all the time and effort you put into it! One night at my art group the tutor gave us a huge sheet of cardboard and told us to lean it against the wall and paint whatever we liked on it, so I picked a painting from a book and began to work on it. To my amazement it turned out brilliant. Nothing is impossible!

Another very important lesson I have learned is that without realising it, art comes from inside and you find the more that you paint the more of your soul you convey.  You discover a lot about yourself when you paint as different things come to the surface all the time.

Where do you get your inspiration from? What inspires you?

At the beginning, when I did sketches it was my family that inspired me. Family photographs that I wanted to transform into pencil and charcoal. I found this very rewarding.

Today, my inspiration comes from everyday life and people doing ordinary things.  I try to express love, mystery, intrigue, despair.  I also like movement in my paintings, for example the movements of a ballet dancer. Other things I am drawn to are a pose, a gesture, how a person tilts their head, holds their cigarette, their facial expression etc. For some reason which I can’t explain I like painting people wearing hats!  Like I said before, we learn something new all the time with art!

How do you deal with criticism?

When I began to draw and paint first I pestered my family and friends  always asking what they thought of my painting/drawing. They would be totally honest with me. If it was positive feedback this felt great but I felt very downhearted if it was negative feedback.

Today, I have learned that criticism is a very important teaching tool in art and I welcome any feedback I can get, be it positive or negative.  Criticism doesn't dishearten me anymore but helps me to improve my art.

Where do you create?

I don’t have any fancy studio for my art. I do all my art work on my kitchen table. I like to have the house to myself and not get interrupted.  I set up, put on some music and begin working on something and before I know it, several hours easily have passed by. You are transported into a different world where nothing else matters only your painting and getting it right. Time doesn't exist in an artist’s world. As Pablo Picasso once said “Art washes away from the soul the dust of everyday life”

What is your favourite piece of work that you have created?

I love the last painting I completed. It is a painting of a man at a bar, smoking a cigarette and looking ever so cool and mysterious.  I wonder what his story is? Another one of my favourites is the painting of Newly Weds walking along a coast road. This was taken from a photograph in a book called US.

Are you working on anything at the moment?

 Yes I have started one last night. This time it’s a painting of a girl sitting on a barrel in the sea looking very sad.

Finally I would like to say I am so lucky to have discovered this wonderful hobby. It takes me away from reality for several hours and I always feel uplifted afterwards. Art is an excellent way to relax and unwind.
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Wow! Well if that doesn't inspire you nothing will. Thanks so much to Rose for sharing with us. I love her work, I think it is amazing. I always admire those who have the patience to put so much detail from real life into their work. 

If you are an artist (of any description) and would like to be interviewed on my blog, it is so easy, just send me an email at ciaramcguireart@gmail.com and I will get back to you asap.

Have a great weekend everyone

Ciara
xoxo