Congratulations to Ginny Page for earning her place as a Finalist in the Boynes Artist Award 9th Edition [Professional Artist category]!

Who are you?

I was born in the UK (1963) in rural Lincolnshire. Much of my childhood was spent alone out in the open fields of the agricultural fenlands where I could escape from the turbulence and hassle of everyday life. Structure, rules, and routine have always been my biggest struggle, so at a very early age I began to draw and paint to help to soothe my troubled brain! I found such joy in silence, solitude and being undisturbed in my own personal thoughts. At the age of 10 I won an art competition at our local garden fete with a little painting I did down at the seaside of hundreds of tiny shells and pebbles washed up by the edge of the sea. I sat by myself with a little box of watercolours and observed every little detail. I remember that day so vividly - the sounds and smell of the ocean, the warm sun and sea breeze and the joyous feeling of freedom and calm. I felt as proud as punch receiving my first prize rosette for my artwork and from that day, I always knew I wanted to be an artist! 50 years on, I am now based in Copenhagen Denmark (since 1986) working as a full-time professional artist.

What inspired you to utilize Painting as a medium?

The paintings of Albrecht Durer were a huge source of inspiration for me as a child. I fell in love with his watercolour and gouache studies especially the painting “Great Piece of Turf” from 1503. I worked as a watercolourist for many years until eventually turning to oils from about 1999.

How would you describe your ARTwork?

Calm, at times melancholy but always hopeful, intensely observed, honest, fragile, simple, and symbolic. Pictorial /almost hyper realistic diaries of my own personal life in the here and the now.

Can you discuss the inspiration and thought process behind your winning work?

I love pretty objects and have always been drawn to hand painted porcelain especially. Things of nostalgia that are often long forgotten in this crazy modern world. I collect a LOT! Also, silver, copper, antique glass, vintage silks, and textiles to name but a few. I am obsessed with eggs and have always had birds as pets throughout my life including canaries, budgies, a rescued pea hen with one leg, rescued crows, chickens of all types. The list goes on! The blue willow pattern bowl with cottage garden motif is my favourite and reminds me of England. Some of the eggs have come from the birds that I rescued and nurtured, others are found in the garden hatched out with holes in. I arranged all the eggs and changed the sizes to fit the painting. The floating feather is from my pet pea hen “Pearl” who just turned up outside my kitchen window on one leg. I fed her for weeks and I really loved her. The painting is really about the whole transience of life and painted in appreciation of the joy that nature brings again and again in endless circles. The beginning, the end, the continuing. The Resurrection. A reminder that we are all connected. Painted in remembrance of all the birds that I nurtured and gave me such pleasure over the years.

Can you walk us through the technical steps of creating your winning work?

I made my own shadow box with an old cardboard box with a hole cut into one end to create a dramatic lighting effect similar to the chiaroscuro effects created by the old masters. I placed an old brick in there and arranged my very simple circular composition on top. I aways measure up the rule of thirds and spent hours fiddling with the lighting and finding the prettiest view of the objects working together. I suspended the feather with a drawing pin on a piece of cotton and waited for it to stop spinning before taking numerous photos. I always use my own photographic references for my paintings in order to make them as unique as possible. I take many photos at different times of the day often combining 3 or 4 different ones until I am happy with the image. My painting is drawn onto a gessoed mdf panel which has been coated sanded and polished with spit (sorry - disgusting but effective) 7 times! the surface needs to be as smooth as silk in order to capture as much detail as possible with my tiny brushes. I don’t use an underpainting but go straight into the colours. I use a very minimalistic palette of 5 colours - the 3 primaries plus black and white. I build up my painting in a multitude of thin layers allowing to dry overnight between the layers. I start with cheap hogs’ hairbrushes and “scrub” the paint on continuing until all the blocking out is complete. Then I gradually start to use small brushes ranging from 0-10x0 for the finishing details. I cannot work without my proportional divider which is my most precious tool and the reason for me having 5 of them as they always get lost in all the mess. Having 4 cats that love to hide in cardboard boxes I have learnt that taking many photos is necessary as if I try to work from life, they are guaranteed to sit on top of my still life set up and either play with it or eat it!

What do you hope to communicate to an audience with your work?

I wish to evoke a feeling of calm, curiosity and pleasure to my audience. I want to draw their eye closer to the subject and reflect on the simple pleasures of life. The biggest compliment for me as an artist is to see someone pause for a bit longer to see my work, stop to put their glasses on and take a closer look! I love the miniature world in all its glory and complexity, and who knows -my work may even cause the viewer to stop thinking about their troubles for a short while at least.

Can you talk about your biggest learning experience during the process of creating your work?

As artists we are learning all the time and I learn something new every day. The weird thing is that painting doesn’t get easier. Not for me anyway…. Each painting brings a new challenge with it and it requires extremely hard work and dedication. The most important thing for me is to be well prepared. I embrace mistakes and there are hundreds of them. That’s how I learn best.

I was actually taught a very hard lesson regarding this particular painting. Luckily, I had almost finished it but then wondered if the background needed to be a slightly different colour. I started fiddling with a patinated copper panel which I put behind it so see if it would look good. I went off to make a cup of tea and then suddenly heard a huge smash and yes-the heavy panel fell over and smashed my beloved eggs to pieces!! I was furious with myself, and I most certainly didn’t embrace that particular mistake for sure. A lot of swearing followed…!

Can you discuss your biggest success since starting your artistic journey?

I consider myself incredibly privileged that I have the freedom and ability to work solely on my work now and not have to worry about having to juggle with a part time job to make ends meet. This was my goal and my dream so therefore my biggest success. winning the church fete art prize at 10 was my biggest success as a child as it was the first time, I was told I was actually good at something. Having my work accepted for various open call competitions has been life changing for me despite many rejections. Being chosen as a finalist and being asked to take part in this interview for the Boynes art prize is of course my latest great success. Thank you for that! I entered the RA summer exhibition for the first time this year with 2 paintings. Both were exhibited and both sold on the VIP opening evening. I was astonished and very proud of that particular achievement. Many other wonderful things have happened during my artistic journey amongst others being accepted as a member of the society of women’s artists. Chosen as a finalist in 16th international ARC salon with one portrait and 2 still life paintings was also a dream come true! Success is basically realizing that what you are doing is actually ok and if others actually like it and buy it – It really can’t get better than that!

Can you share with us the best piece of advice you you wish you had known at the start of your career?

Yes. Don’t allow yourself to be bullied into doing a type of art form that doesn’t represent you as a person. I battled at art school at the age of 16 trying to fit in with what was expected of me and what was trendy at that time. I repeated the same silly scenario in Copenhagen where I purposely tried to change my style as I was repeatedly told that what I was doing was wrong and that maybe I should choose another path. After a year of painting the worst work, I ever produced I took great pleasure in burning the lot on a bonfire! It felt great! My advice to any young artist starting out is this. Ask yourself “why” about your work. Does it bring you pleasure? Is it a necessity for your wellbeing on a daily basis? Listen to advice, learn from books or online, experiment, but find your own voice. That’s how your wok evolves naturally. Be honest. work hard every day with no excuses. If love doesn’t come into it – forget it!

What projects are you working on currently? Can you discuss them?

I have just counted 19 unfinished paintings lying around in my studio amongst others a painting of my mischievous cat sitting in my shadow box. I put an earring on her like the Rembrandt portrait and a fur coat. My newest painting is my rescue chick with a bad leg sitting in a tipped up Chinese cup with the title “Made in China” I also have a still life with lemon, blackberries and medieval glass, an unfurling Icelandic poppy painted on a circular patinated copper background, a cup of anemones turning into white butterflies, a hanging lemon, a cracked egg with a little dolls face peeking out of it………I think I need to get back to this question….

What is your dream project or piece you hope to accomplish?

My dream project is to have a painting accepted to the BP portrait at the national portrait gallery London. I really must paint an honest portrait of myself just because I haven’t! I also want to paint my sons and other figure portraits of people I love.

As a finalist, do you have any advice for artists who want to submit to awards, competitions, residencies, etc.?

Submitting to competitions, awards etc. has definitely been the best thing I ever did, and I highly recommend any artist to try everything possible. Entering magazine competitions is a brilliant start and it has been a huge confidence booster for me! Meeting other likewise artists in the same boat is so inspiring and helpful and makes you feel like you are not the only” weirdo nerd “on the planet! I was lucky enough to meet another fellow artist at a group exhibition at the Mall Galleries who recommended me the Boynes art Prize award open call. I am so grateful for that as look what happened! I highly recommend every artist to submit to as many competitions as possible but bearing in mind to read the terms and conditions very carefully before hand. Do the homework and check it all out before submitting and last but not least expect some disappointments and rejections that is just a part of it. Go for it and don’t wait. The time is only now!

Lastly, I like to ask everyone what advice they would give to their fellow artists, what is your advice?

I think I already answered that one earlier. In a nutshell-Don’t hesitate-just do it! Believe in yourself and it will all work out in the end if you continue to put the work in, and only then. Don’t worry that you don’t have enough space or need fancy equipment or special teaching or inspiration. I hear that all the time through my earlier teaching! Feed your passion and make sure to do something creative every day even if it is just a small sketch or fiddling about with new ideas. I spend hours arranging bits and bobs with my head stuck in my shadow box. I see it as the same as when I was a child playing with my dolls house except, I am now 60 and never really became an adult. Even if your experimentation fails that day, it will spark other ideas that would never have happened if you hadn’t allowed yourself the freedom to think and “play”. You are allowed! Put boring chores aside and prioritise. There will always be dust and mess to clean up. Don’t expect “inspiration” to come crashing down on you from the heavens. It doesn’t! Making a mark on a piece of paper will ignite inspiration. Thinking about it won’t!

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