“If I could say it in words there would be no reason to paint.”
Edward Hopper
May paints freely, experimenting with different genres, styles and approaches to colour and texture. Art is subjective. She is always learning, painting various subjects, enjoying the colours she uses and the story they tell. From subjects such as livestock, boats, dogs, still life, toys, portraits and much much more. She likes to experiment and gives a sense of creating something very unique, beautiful and personal.
Her more recent paintings take on a deeper look into the private world of the unobserved. With a long lens, she captures the everyday life of the public in a split second. The paintings are not staged and give a sense of honesty, reality, and a moment in the life of the unsuspecting sitter. She captures the mood, the feelings they are experiencing and the questions the viewer might ask when interpreting her work. These paintings incorporate strong body language, emotions played out in the stance of the sitter. The hope is this comes across in an expressive and moving form.
May is painting for galleries at the moment. This gives her the creative freedom, and expression she needs without the pressure of commissions. They sell in quarterly sales at prestigious settings in Belfast, Dublin, and local art inspired galleries.
May spent a summer with John Angel in Belfast in 2019. He introduced the painting style of the Renaissance artists. Her subject was a gourd and oranges in still life in the style of William-Adolphe Bouguereau (1825-1905). This expensive course transformed her style of work towards looser fine art. She is however continually learning and creating, moving towards more expressionism, wishing to focus on colour and form, and not dull the narrative intended.
She has taken up courses with several highly regarded and established artists. Kill Kemp, of Well Kemp School of Art and Ceasor Santo to name two. They have both been instrumental in gaining experience in use of the colour palette, focusing on the Zorn palette for portraits.
She also attended several of Natasha Barr’s workshops. These have been invaluable in understanding other artists styles.
In her summer holidays she visits the old master’s homes. This lets her get up close and personal with the artist on the very spot where they created there great works. Seeing their work, their brush strokes, gives more identification, depth and education than pictures in books can ever do. A few properly positioned brush strokes can be all it needs to produce an exciting piece of work. Sorolla’s home in Madrid and Monet’s in Giverny have both been a highlight recently.
