Ivan Jones Pastel Artist

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Sharing a recent pet portrait commission "Bonzo"

Sharing a recent pet portrait commission “Bonzo”

Hello and hope all is well? I thought it time to share the completed commissioned pastel portrait of Bonzo with you, including the reference photo that I took to work from and a close up of his face. He is such a lovely working spaniel and posed beautifully for his photo. This portrait was given to his owner, by his wife, for his birthday and all the family were delighted. Makes the time spent…

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See the creation of this commissioned puppy portrait "Hugo" with video and happy owner

See the creation of this commissioned puppy portrait “Hugo” with video and happy owner

It is always good when a commissioned artwork is finally given to the owner so that it can be shared with you! 

Usually I am asked to undertake a portrait, whether animal or person, for a birthday and so cannot reveal it until after the date of the gift giving. And so it was for Hugo, the labrador.

I was contacted by Paula, who has purchased and commissioned a number of pastel artworks from…

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Delighted to share awards received for floral artwork from a recent art competition

Delighted to share awards received for floral artwork from a recent art competition

It is not often I undertake pastel paintings of flowers, but a few years ago I created a series of artworks on the floral theme. These included a marigold, waterlily, orchid, rose and dahlia.  

Some of my floral artworks using soft pastel and pastel pencils on Artspectrum colourfix paper

 When the Light Space Time art gallery undertook a Botanicals art competition I thought it was entering…

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"Resting hands" pastel artwork is honoured in Boldbrush painting competition.

“Resting hands” pastel artwork is honoured in Boldbrush painting competition.

A while ago I signed up to a free art competition with FASO, who not only host artist websites but also have a range of art marketing options. FASO were one of the artist website options I researched before choosing Shopify to work with.  

Boldbrush art competitions are free for the first entry and I have started entering them on a monthly basis. My first entry was in November 2019 and was…

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Sharing memories of childhood art experiences and the art journey

Although there are hints about the childhood experiences that influenced my art journey elsewhere, I would like to share a bit more with you.

I had always been interested in art, even as a child, but really discovered my love for art at Junior School when I was asked to help paint the background of a float used in the local town’s Coronation Parade. Opening all the tins of poster paint, seeing…

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A great response to this recent family portrait commission

A great response to this recent family portrait commission

“Thank you so much for our wonderful portrait picture Ivan. You have achieved, to our delight, just what we wanted including an obvious emotional connection of us and the dogs. With many thanks! Gilli & John”

This is the best response I could have had from what was a challenging commission. The challenges started from the time the photos were taken in mid June 2019 by my wife Cathy through to…

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Excited to add the "Live Preview" to my website catalog - see my artworks in your home!

Excited to add the Live Preview option to my website catalog - see my artworks in your home! Augmented reality at work....

UPDATE – this Live Preview option has a few teething problems so please be patient when using…..many thanks!

For a long time I have been admiring websites that have various types of “augmented reality” which allows you to see items in context, in 3D and so on. 

I have also seen many other sorts of “art-selling” websites and the option to see artworks in context, has been a major draw for me…

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So pleased to be asked to create this unique commissioned portrait of a very special dog

So pleased to be asked to create this unique commissioned portrait of a very special dog

It is always nice to be asked to undertake a commission for someone and it is also privilege to create something unique. I was approached in the autumn by a friend of an aquaintance, who my wife Cath knew through the Haven Breast Cancer charity ( read more about my involvement with this charity here )

This friend, Pat, was considering having a portrait done of her dog as a Christmas gift for…

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Delighted to be invited to be part of an exciting charity fashion event with my artworks

This blog explains the history behind my involvement with the Blossom Fashion Show held on April 5th by the Breast Cancer Haven charity in Hereford.

When my wife Cathy had treatment for breast cancer in 2011, an important part of her recovery involved sessions at the Breast Cancer Haven in Hereford. These sessions included massage, acupuncture, shiatsu, group discussions and other holistic therapies. You can find out more about the Haven on their website.

When I was President of the Knighton and District Rotary Club last year, I chose the…

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A detailed pastel artwork - a woodpecker - added to my newly revamped website

A detailed pastel artwork – a woodpecker – added to my newly revamped website

Hello my friends and I hope 2020 has started off well for you. I am always looking for popular subject matter and woodpeckers have a great appeal as they are quite difficult to spot except for their distinctive call. The reference photo for this particular woodpecker, looking into it’s nest, was taken by Terry Hancock and captured my imagination.

Ivan Jones pastel artist sharpening a pastel…

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A great way to show off pastel art technique and skills by using hyperlapse video!

A great way to show off pastel art technique and skills by using hyperlapse video!

It has been a busy week as I have been working on a commission that is a surprise Christmas gift for a lady who found me by searching “pastel artist” on Google. She had a commission done in previous years by a local pastel artist but could not contact her so found me! This is a glimpse of the work in progress…..

Commissioned artwork in progress

Now that this commission has been completed…

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Excited to have a number of detailed artworks accepted by the Sable and Hogg Gallery in Brecon

Excited to have a number of detailed artworks accepted by the Sable and Hogg Gallery in Brecon

It can be very difficult for any artist to find a gallery to display and sell their artwork. Always a challenge. However I was very fortunate a number of years ago to visit the Sable and Hogg Gallery & Framers and as the owner at the time, Paul Millis, was a pastel artist he was keen to have my detailed pastel artworks in his gallery.

At that time the economic climate pre-Brexit was good and I…

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It's back to the easel now, after a successful exhibition is over.

It’s back to the easel now, after a successful exhibition is over.

Well, it is a few days now since we dismantled our exhibition at the Makers Mezzanine in Whitney on Wye in Herefordshire. We enjoyed the 9 days of H-art (Herefordshire art ) week this year as, unlike in previous years, we were able to visit other venues across the county……

H-art 2019 at the Makers Mezzanine Ivan Jones pastel artist

We did meet a lot of people during our exhibition as we…

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Searching for the right pastel pencil! See more https://ivanjonesart.co.uk/blogs/news/why-did-i-chose-a-hedgehog-for-my-latest-pastel-artwork

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Balancing the creation of artwork with the promotion of artwork and with life in general!

Balancing the creation of artwork with the promotion of artwork and with life in general!

It has been a busy few weeks with my Rotary commitments but I have managed to finish another kingfisher and nearly finished a woodpecker for my next exhibition at the Makers Mezzanine in September. Each artwork takes 25 to 30 hours so you can see why it is a slow process!

Woodpecker ( photo reference Terry Hancock ) and Kingfisher ( photo reference Paul Elliott) completed

It is always a bit…

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It's all about delightful duckling artworks today!

It’s all about delightful duckling artworks today!

It has been a busy month, with the recent exhibition now complete and planning for the next one during Herefordshire (H-art) week in September at the Makers Mezzanine in Whitney on Wye. I have completed one new work and have started a woodpecker but more on these soon….

One thing that I found interesting was when a friend came to see me at the exhibition when I was stewarding an expressed an…

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A successful art exhibition and a study of human behaviour.....

I have been pleased with the Out of the Hills art exhibition, given the current economic climate - selling two paintings and three prints as well as 30 cards. It was also interesting meeting people while stewarding at the event. An enjoyable experience!

It has been a busy two weeks as I have flitted between catching up with the garden and house necessities, stewarding at the “Out of the Hills” art exhibition and starting on my next piece of artwork ( see below ) The exhibition ended on Saturday 16th……

My current artwork – a kingfisher in creation

I have been pleased with the outcome of the exhibition, given the current economic climate –…

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