Page 123 - International Artist2 110

MIXED MEDIA UNITED KINGDOM

DEMONSTRATION

Claire “Cerysanne” Groves
Animal Characteristics

Claire “Cerysanne” Groves mixes oils with other mediums to
capture all aspects of an animal, from personality to textures

rom early childhood, we are introduced movement. It is all of these characteristics
Fto the wonder and beauty of the animal that I strive to encapsulate in my work.
kingdom through such avenues as television My painting time is split between doing
documentaries, zoos and, if we are lucky, the portraits of domestic animals by commission
delight of owning and caring for a tamed and capturing wildlife in all its glory, to
version of wild animals such as cats and sell to the public. I work from reference
horses. Animals are a universal subject we photographs for the majority of the time; for
can all converse in, and in turn, bring us my commissions it is recreating a beloved
together. I often have people commenting pet from a favourite photo chosen by my
on how one of my paintings has reminded client, but for my wildlife pieces it’s finding
them of their experiences with the wondrous the one that inspires me on that given day.
creatures that tread this earth. There has to be a connection between me
Personally, I find animals fascinating and and the subject matter; a spark of emotion,
am captivated by their texture and colours a hint of inspiration or amazing detail that
as well as how they can communicate and makes me itch to paint it.
make us feel with their expressions and Wherever possible I use my own
photographs or those of family/friends, so
that I feel more connected to the painting
by reliving those memories. With Gentle
Giant, the painting I’ve chosen as my
demonstration piece, it was the gentleness
of the photograph that inspired me to
paint him. It was my aim to re-create this
gentleness and the calm personality of
giraffes, so that my audience would be
touched in the same way.

Top left: Cosmo, mixed media, 20 x 20" (50 x 50 cm)
Lions are the majestic kings of the animal world
and I wanted to convey their grandness and
intenseness with this piece. Using handmade paper
and palette knife work on the mane only helped
toward achieving my goal.

Left: Odette, mixed media, 16 x 16" (40 x 40 cm)
The limited colour palette of the feathers against
the intense orange and black draws your eye into
this calm, peaceful composition.

122

Claire Groves_Demo.indd 122 6/17/16 1:47 PM