Hello, how are you? 

Well, where do I begin on this one? What a fantastic week it was, celebrating all things art! We shared so many beautiful stories from artists all around the world, from people who’ve just started painting a few weeks ago and those who are more established and making a living out of their art. Our main topic of conversation was talking about why art is so important to us and everyone around us. 

I believe there is a place for everyone in the art world, no matter what stage or age, whether you are self-taught or qualified, painting with oil or coffee, there is room for everyone. It is my mission to help people make art they love and find the courage to be themselves. With this in mind, I wanted to reinforce the UAS mantra of, YOU MATTER | ART MATTERS | YOUR ART MATTERS, and I definitely think we did that. 

You can watch all the videos from Your Art Matters week here:

Throughout the week, I went live on Facebook and Youtube every day, and each video featured guests that I chatted to, and they shared their experience of being an artist. I spoke to many artists who are Hub members. Here are just a few below:

Paul Trussell

I got to speak to Hub member Paul Trussell. Paul is based in the UK. He has spent many years as an actor but has always had a passion for art. Paul is now spending more time finding his artistic voice in the visual arts. We spoke all about his journey. 

Al Saunders

I was then joined by Al Saunders, who has been a watercolourist and illustrator for over 20 years. Her main influences have been Quentin Blake, Gerald Scarfe and Fergus Milne. We got to hear about Al’s journey and top tips for a successful art career.

Sharon Griffin and Wayne Chisnall

In my third video, Sharon Griffin and Wayne Chisnall joined me. Sharon makes ceramic sculpture and is represented by numerous galleries and has now been an artist for over 25 years.

Wayne is a fine art practitioner with a background in book, magazine and technical illustration; becoming better known for his sculptural work, paintings, drawings and prints. He is a winner of the Royal British Society of Sculptors Bursary Award with a solid history of exhibiting nationally and internationally.

They both came together and shared their journey into a recent collaboration and how they are now approaching a non commercial art project that is helping to raise their profile, gain exposure and impact the community. 

Live Session

One of my highlights in the week was the live session where we all came together to make art. We grabbed our paper, pens, paints, sketchbook and got creative.

Dr Vivien Sabel 

Towards the end of the week, Dr Vivien Sabel joined me. I was so excited to bring Vivien in for this chat, as she helped many years ago when I was at my lowest point with depression, anxiety and PTSD. She was my therapist and lifeline, and I hadn’t seen her in person since then. 

It was a strange twist of fate that brought us back together when Dr Viv turned to art during lockdown. She’s only been painting since May and joined the UAS Hub back in July. She has achieved incredible success already. 

We received some lovely comments saying how inspiring the week was and how all the sessions were so useful. A massive thank you to everyone who took part, tuned in, shared and commented.

Your Art Matters week will be back! 

Much love,

Michelle X