Contest 12 – Winner Interview – Ginny Page

Interviewed by - Pragati Surana https://www.instagram.com/pragatisurana.ch/

Please tell us about your journey as an artist.

Since my early childhood I have always loved drawing and painting. At the age of 10 I won first prize in an art competition in our local church. A watercolour painting done on the beach where I sat an entire day painting every stone and shell near the edge of the sea. I won a red rosette and will never forget that joyous feeling when receiving my prize in front of the vicar! This was my kickstart to wanting to be an artist.

At only 16 I left home and began a 2-year foundation course at Lincoln College of art and design. It was a very turbulent time in my personal life in 1980 and unfortunately my rebellious behavior led to my dismissal from the college after the first year and a half. I exhibited for the first time in a little gallery next to the college and sold 3 paintings! I also began painting custom motorbike tanks.

I left the UK to live in Canada for a year selling paintings along the way. In 1986 I escaped again to Denmark where I met the love of my life and my greatest supporter. Based in Copenhagen I started a small career in illustration. My first project was 24 cards with birds’ animals and plants. I became a conservator assistant specializing in retouching and restoring old paintings and altarpieces went on to have my own business in painting and restoring for 10 years. Other jobs have been painting and decorating, teaching faux paint effects, and teaching art to both children and adults.

I switched to oil painting in 1999 after a gallery owner Knud Grothe sold one of my watercolors and encouraged me to paint a large figure in oils. I have never looked back since! I have been exhibiting with Knud for 26 years now.

A fellow artist encouraged me to send one of my figure paintings to international artist magazine. This also really kickstarted my art career and has led to many articles and awards over the years. Artists and illustrator’s magazine has also been a huge support and led to many exhibitions. International open call competitions have been amazing resulting in numerous exhibitions all over Europe.

I am a proud member of the Society of Women Artists SWA in England and have exhibited many times with them and also with several other societies at the Mall Galleries in London over the years.

What is your medium and why did you choose it?

My medium is oil paint on canvas or panel which I have stuck with since 1999.

I love the versatility and richness of the paint and also the fact that mistakes can easily be rectified. I find the medium very rewarding. Oil paint is truly magical stuff!

I occasionally like to combine silver, gold or copper leaf into my paintings as in this particular piece.

I began with a linen canvas, drew only the outline of the model, Ida, and then gilded the entire background with silver leaf. My idea was to create an ice-cold atmosphere with cold colours whilst allowing the painting to reflect different colours depending on the surroundings in which it is hung.

The trees were painted directly onto the silver leaf, leaving unfinished spaces for contemplation and reflection. I used a limited palette of ivory black, titanium white, ultramarine, yellow ochre and vermillion, building up many thin layers of paint from light to dark, rather like a watercolour technique but using oils.

What was the inspiration behind this work?

The girl on the painting is called Ida. she was my first ever art pupil at the age of 6 and is still with me now at the age of 22! She lives in a small Danish town called” Birkerød ”which loosely translated means “A clearing of birch trees”

Ida is an incredible artist herself and also very sensitive and a naturally beautiful person both inside and out. I wanted to capture her vulnerability and youthfulness on this painting so It could be frozen in time for years to come.

It was certainly a freezing day in Denmark when we went for that walk in the forest! The spot where she is standing on the painting is our favourite spot and only a 10-minute walk from my home. the birch trees are always so calming and soothing. All we could hear was the delicate silvery leaves rustling in the icy wind. Silvery silence- away from distractions and noise and time for contemplation and gratitude for our ever-changing environment.

Inspired by the ice-cold winters in Denmark and the thought of what kind of future awaits the youth of today. Some stare into the bleakness with confusion and anxiety whilst others shine.

Who is your favorite artist? Why?

Oh no….sooo many!

Andrew Wyeth’s egg tempera paintings because he paints such sensitive and simple everyday motifs from his home surroundings. A gently blowing lace curtain, an old lady holding a kitten, a barbed wire fence in a bleak landscape with a tiny detail of sheep’s wool caught on the wire…I love all of them!

John Everett Millais death of Ophelia. It makes me cry every time I see it at the Tate gallery! Sheer beauty executed with such skill and emotion.

Adriaen Coorte, Dutch still life painter - bunch of asparagus on a ledge. He draws the viewer

in to remind them of the sheer beauty of everyday objects.

The list is endless so I must stop here!