MOTHER'S DAY GIFT IDEAS

I'm not a mum, (only to my adored puppy Donny if that counts?!) but I have one and I love her!

Mother's day is coming up on Sunday 10th May, so to make it easier to choose a unique gift for your special mum I've selected a few goodies that she might like! Use the code LOVEMUM at checkout for a cheeky discount (valid only until 10th May 2015).

I really wish I could see my mum more often but she lives in Italy, which makes it tough. 

Be grateful if you are able to visit yours as often as you wish... Happy Mother's Day!

Limited edition iPhone 5 covers $29.99 each

New range of resin art designed by Todd Cleave of Pancake Designs for our upcoming collaborative exhibition "Fields, Oceans and Sunsets" starting from $99

Borrowed beauty acrylic and 23 carat gold leaf on canvas, 26 x 22.5 cm each, $590

Melting in your sweet dreams acrylic and charcoal on canvas, 66x91 cm, $950

ETHEL & LEO COLLABORATION

Ethel and Leo is one of my favourite shops to visit here in Perth. They have the most amazing dresses, that just flow and make you feel like a bohemian chic goddess!

Hailing from the serene beaches of Western Australia, Ethel & Leo has a love for anything coastal and an addiction to colour! They have innate appreciation for the beauty in life that surrounds us here in WA and encourage those free spirited souls to express their inner creativity  & believe in magic. 

Fostering a unique aesthetic and impeccable quality standards, Ethel & Leo is handmade, with original artwork and timeless, hand printed silks.

After our collaborative exhibition in November 2014 our very first limited edition silk maxi dress was born! I loooove it! The colours turned up amazingly true to the original artwork “Future of now” that turned beautifully into a unique silk fabric for the limited edition E&L x FG collaboration.

Ok, I confess – I already own too many Ethel and Leo beauties and I just can’t stop wearing the “Future of now” maxi dress!! 

A TWILIGHT HOME OPEN

17 February 2015

Prospective buyers seized a rare opportunity to sample Perth's premium coastal lifestyle during the launch of a North Coogee home last Thursday night. 

Realmark Real Estate offered visitors a "life in Coogee experience" to highlight the lifestyle vale of the grand tri-level residence on 440 sam in Port Coogee, with the marina and the ocean on its door step.

The property has been styled for sale by interior designer Lorena Ongaro-Anderson in a contemporary style and she has selected some of my paintings to finish off the styling and to bring a pop of colour into the walls. 

"The launch event gave guests a rare opportunity to spend an evening in a beautiful property set in a fantastic location" said selling agent Darren Berley. 

"Guests were able to view interior design and art at its best and experience firsthand how your choice of furniture and selected artworks can bring a home to life complementing beautifully the surrounding coastal environment."

SUMMER RISING | ART EXHIBITION & FASHION SHOWCASE

28 November 2014

Wow, what a week we had! My latest exhibition "Summer Rising" has officially launched last night at Gnagnarella Living Space Concept Gallery, with an exclusive bloggers preview on Tuesday night!

For this event I have joined creative forces with up and coming Western Australian fashion designer Ethel and Leo to create a unique art x fashion showcase. 

Photo by Forty Up Blog

When I first saw Ethel and Leo's colourful creations run the Telstra Perth Fashion Festival I was struck by the bold patterns and the richness of the designs which characterised all Ethel and Leo's silky dresses. I didn't waste any time and got in touch with Jess, the talented designer behind the label, willing to collaborate. 

When Jess saw my paintings she "literally died" (quoting her own words here!) and straight away we new we had to create something special together... Summer Rising was born!

A love for all things colourful and coastal unites us, and Jess's original creations simply-just-perfectly complement my paintings. 

The rooms of my Living Space Concept Gallery were filled with a magic mix of bohemian romance and bold abstract paintings. 

We would like to say a huge thank you to our wonderful sponsors who have supported Summer Rising with yummy treats from Cookie Dough, wines from Rosily Vineyard and La Vigna, Peroni Nastro Azzurro beers, and incredible flower arrangements from Sheridan Tjhung.

Photo by Aimee Jones Photography

We hope you all had as much fun as we did in enjoying the art and the fashion!

Photo by Aimee Jones Photography

Jess and I sincerely thank you all of our loyal supporters who visited Summer Rising and all Perth bloggers who reviewed the event. 

RIVER SHORES INSPIRATION

30 October 2014

Since I moved to North Fremantle, on the beautiful river shores of Perth, I have been totally fascinated by the ever changing colours and reflections of the Swan River. 

Since then, the river has played a significant role in my art, as I receive inspiration from it every day. I walk along the the banks every morning and every evening with my loyal four legged companion Batman, and depending on the time of the day, the season and the tides, the scenery it's always changing, and a constant inspiration for my paintings. 

A constant inspiration, always flowing but always different, sometimes andante as I'm walking steadily along the river banks, sometimes furioso over windy winter days, sometimes tranquillo with hardly any visible movement, often lento, dry and pianissimo, sometimes giocoso with pleasure, sometimes sparkling brillante in the sun, sometimes appassionato in the evening, sometimes vivace, and always, amoroso and fascinating.

River moorings 90 x 290 cm

Sunshine on the river suffused in hazy golden light 95 x 265 cm

HONG KONG EXHIBITION OCTOBER 2014

6 October 2014

Another edition of Hong Kong's Asia Contemporary Art Show has just closed, and first thing first, I wish to say a big thank you to all the lovely guests who came to visit me at the exhibition. 

As most of you would know and would have heard on the news in the past few days, last week Hong Kong has been occupied by protestors pro-democracy, and the main area where all the action was based was right outside where the exhibition took place! As we arrived in Hong Kong we found ourselves amongst thousands of young students protesting for democracy and making history! 

 t first I was a bit worried, particularly the day after police fired tear gas and pepper spray and clashed against demonstrators. Since then, crowds flooded the streets blocking key roads in government central district ignoring official warnings against illegal demonstrations. Although hugely supported, the demonstrations were peaceful and very organised, we even saw participants cleaning up around them and some were even doing their homework! Unfortunately the "Umbrella Revolution" had a pretty big impact on the number of visitors to the art show, as many didn't have access to the venue as many major roads were closed for more than a week, and we really appreciated the effort of everyone who managed to visit the exhibition. 

But as the famous line goes 'the show must go on' so we did and we were more than ready to continue and open the show to welcome many art lovers and collectors! It was business as usual and we had a chance to meet lots of lovely new clients. 

Last time I exhibited in Hong Kong in May, the show reached more than 10,000 visitors in only 4 days and it has been really busy, so this time I had a chance to organise myself and I arrived a little earlier to welcome customers who wanted to preview my works before everyone else arrived!

First in best served: here's Patricia who took home "You know I dream in colour" before the show even started!

My works have also been noticed by a local art dealer who will now represent my works in Hong Kong! Pretty chuffed about it! ;-D

A big thanks you to my favourite Western Australian label Ethel and Leo who dressed me in fabulous silk dresses for the duration of the show. More to come soon as we will be collaborating again with this unique designer for a summer fashion + art event, so sty tuned!

Last but not least, a massive thank you to my biggest supporter, my husband Russell, who has always believed in me and continues to back me wherever my art takes me!

Hong Kong you have been great and we will see you again in March 2015! 

To get all the invitations to my upcoming exhibitions join the mailing list.

COMMISSIONED WORKS :: THE CREATIVE PROCESS

15 September 2014

To me the objective of a commissioned painting is to retrieve a brief from the client, give it sophistication and finesse, then deliver it back to the client as poetry!

Being asked to paint a commission could feel at first like the ultimate compliment for an artist, to create something personal for a prospective client. I have to admit, at first, I really didn't enjoy painting on commission and pretty much discouraged all my clients that would ask me to go down that path and turned down many commissioned jobs. I just wanted to create freely what I wanted and I thought that following someone's ideas of what "my" painting should look like, it just wouldn't work for me. 

As I grew up as an artist I realised I had to take a different view on commissioned paintings and had to find a way to keep my relation with commissions as smooth as possible. 

Since I have been working from my gallery apartment in North Fremantle I found myself dealing directly with clients, they would visit me and take a look at what I had available to show them at the time and often they would ask me if I were able to work on commission to create something perfect for their home or office! 

                                                          Photo by Simone Anderson for House Nerd 

As I established a lovely and direct relationship with my clients I have found creating commissioned paintings so much easier and re-discovered that I really enjoyed the process! I just loved creating an artwork knowing that someone couldn't wait to fill an empty space on their walls and have something especially made for them that they could treasure for life!

I finally realised that the key to a successful commission is the collaboration between the artist and the client. I love visiting my clients homes where possible, getting to personally know them, getting to understand their stories and why they "need" something special for them and re-create their personal story onto canvas!

This client used to have a window overlooking a courtyard, but decided to enclose it in order to transform it into a bigger walk-in wardrobe. Now we have replaced that window with one of my landscape paintings, the artworks picks up where nature left off, so that the client can still have her "window" looking out into the ocean! 

When I visit clients homes I take digital camera notes about the room, the colours and the decor for reference. I chat about colours and the 'feel' of the painting. I want to know what they want the painting to tell them and what they would like to see and feel looking at it. From there the creative process unfolds and I keep a digital diary of the work in progress to show the client. 

This is "In A Different Light" my latest commission I have created for a lovely couple in Rome for their new home! 

If you would like to enquiry about a commissioned painting please contact me via email info@francescagnagnarella.com

WE LOVE INSTAGRAM

29 August 2014

Last night I attended Perth's very first Instameet! 

Oh what a night jam packed with creatives of all kinds, inspiration bouncing of the walls, laughter and glitter, lots of glitter!

For those of you who are not so social media savvy, Instagram is a photo-sharing social media platform where I have discovered so many creative talents and made lots of new friends, including super blogger Maya from House Nerd, and interior designer Nelly from Twinkle and Whistle, who are pictured in this silly photo with me!

I use Instagram to share all the behind the scenes of the making of new paintings, the latest studio craze, giveaways and lots of photographs that inspire my creative soul! 

If you would like to join my Insta family, please follow me @fragnagna_art