Treat Yourself and Brighten Up Your Home This Summer with Original Works of Art

Original Paintings

Purchasing a unique painting by a top artist is an ideal way to accessorise and brighten up your home.  Visiting your local art gallery will enable you to get an idea of the particular artist or style you are interested in. Popular artists include Jiri Borsky, who produces unique, colourful oil pieces on stretched canvases. One of Jiri’s most popular works of art is the acrylic ‘harbour in the rain’ - a beautiful, hand finished painting featuring several shades of blue.  Although born in Dobrany, Czech Republic, Jiri moved to Britain in 1975 and studied painting at Staffordshire University, where he graduated with a BA (HONS) degree in 1979.

Since then, he has been painting full time and his work is widely exhibited, with over 1,650 original paintings in galleries across the UK and abroad. Chris Cyprus is also a popular UK artist due to his series of bright, colourful paintings portraying the humble garden shed. His works of art have lead to many TV appearances, including BBC’s Gardner’s World.  In 2010, he completed his ‘Northern Lights’ series, which portrayed the incredibly snowy winter across the UK. Chris is a self taught artist who paints full-time in his studio based in Mossley, Lancashire. His pieces are widely exhibited across the UK and abroad.

Football Art

Football art is becoming extremely popular. Original pieces provide ideal gifts for football fans and are perfect for any football memorabilia collection. Several midlands based galleries offer a wide selection of football prints. American artist Paine Proffitt produces a variety of West Bromwich Albion paintings and recently became their artist-in-residence for the 2011/2012 season. Although born in the states, Paine studied at the University of Brighton and her paintings reflect her passion for both art and sport. Paine has also produced paintings for Port Vale and Aberdeen Football Club. Football prints often have a retro style, making them a perfect gift for any football mad Dad, Granddad or Uncle.

Hand painted art pottery

As well as paintings, you could also enhance your home with original ceramic artwork. Anita Harris produces a wide range of bright and colourful pottery pieces, all of which are hand painted and fired at her pottery studio in Longton, Stoke on Trent, Staffordshire. Prestige vases highlight African and Cuban styles, where as pear drop vases with hand painted water lilies reflect a more feminine style. Marie Graves’ pottery on the other hand is perfect for all owl lovers. Her porcelain and fine china pieces have been sold all over the world. Marie’s collections also include images of cats, dogs and horses. Visit your local art gallery and treat yourself to a piece of original art.