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People of the North - Artist Virginia Hadfield
People of the North - Artist Virginia Hadfield
Date: 2015-04-24
Virginia studied Fine Art at the University of the Witwatersrand in Johannesburg, where her significant teachers were Cecily Sash, Judith Mason, Guiseppe Cattaneo, and Erica Berry. Although she began her working life as a journalist with the Rand Daily Mail, after marrying, Virginia had three children in three years, so she found herself painting while the kids played around her ankles! Within a lifetime of drawing and painting, Virginia has done portraits of many well-known personalities both in South Africa and the UK. Her portrait of former president FW de Klerk graced King's House in Durban during his presidency. Through an eight year sojourn in London, Virginia's homesickness led to paintings inspired by the tropical colours and beach scenes of South Africa.
"After returning home I did nothing," Virginia explained. "My husband's health declined, and after his death it took me some years to find my feet, but last year I devoted myself to pencil drawing, producing and marketing greeting cards featuring game park animals, birds and domestic pets. Pencil to me is one of the most sensitive and meticulous mediums, but it is as if the year working in pencil was a concentrated and epic 'apprenticeship' as now my abstracts in colour are just bursting forth. From being resolutely realistic, to this expression of movement and form defined by colour alone, is a joyous and freeing experience. I know that this new path will lead me on a fantastic journey. I am thrilled now to be on the Saatchi horizon," Virginia concluded.
For tips, technical advice, and a lot of inspiration for anyone interested in exploring the amazing world of art, visit https://www.facebook.com/pages/Virginia-Hadfield-fine-artist-talking/889700727740137. To see more of Virginia's work, visit https://www.saatchiart.com/virginiahadfield.