As the days draw in, we’re bringing some light to Enter Gallery via Hello Marine – a Paris-born, Brighton-based artist who brings a fresh and modern take to the still life, presenting familiar objects with signature twists.
Across her work, bold colours combine with an innocent and striking simplicity that radiates positivity back to the observer. In fact, Hello Marine reveals her goal as an artist is to deliver a joyful sense of escapism. We think she’s onto something…
In today’s blog, we chat to Hello Marine to learn more about her instinctive practice, and to discover how the world around her provides all the inspiration she needs.
The Artist
Creative from the offset, Hello Marine always suspected her destiny would be image based. So, after studying art and gaining a degree in graphic design, Hello Marine ventured into the worlds of screen printing and illustration, working with a selection of fashionable clients from Dior and Lacoste, to Time Out and the New York Times.
Now, Hello Marine’s art has evolved into vibrant acrylic paintings. From floral displays and magnificent house plants, to capturing the beauty of a thoughtfully-organised shelf, each lively artwork provides a comforting sense of home.
Hello Marine has exhibited her work across the UK, as well as in America, Australia and France, gaining the attention of many collectors along the way.
Life in Technicolour
When looking at Hello Marine’s art, one of the first elements that leaps from the canvas is her bold use of colour. Invigorating, joyful and welcoming all at once, colour is a major source of inspiration for this artist. Hello Marine reveals:
“I am constantly inspired by the colour palette of the world around me. Inspiration can come from anywhere, particularly in a place as colourful as Brighton!
Anything can catch my eye. It can be a book, a still from a film, even the outfit choice of someone I pass on the street. Being French, I could just sit down and watch the world go by for ages. It’s like a catwalk of inspiration just passing me by.”
These patterns and colour combinations that Hello Marine discovers during her day-to-day are what forms her visual language and the basis of each original painting.
“I’m a magpie for collecting colours and colour combinations. I take photos of these things and pinpoint the colours I like within the photographs to use them later in my work. When I get into the studio, I’ll try and recreate the colours. Sometimes they work and sometimes they lead me to colours that work better.”
Play Time
At Enter Gallery, we’re eternally fascinated by how our artists create their works and what’s going through their minds whilst in the whirlwind of creation.
Like her artworks, Hello Marine’s creative process is rather organic. While she sometimes sketches out general compositions of her work, one of the most important elements to her practice relies entirely on instinct. Hello Marine reveals:
“Once my colours are selected and perfectly-mixed, I like to keep things instinctive, working intuitively in a way that allows me to keep the creative process fresh. When I start a piece, usually I don’t know how it is going to end. I like to build it as it goes, allowing my instincts to guide me all the way to the finished piece.
There’s an innocence in my work that I like and try to maintain. I want to capture the childlike wonder at the world that I see in children’s drawings. That sense of play, and not creating with a clear, rigid outcome in mind. It keeps things interesting, and allows space for new elements and ideas to emerge. I hope that my work continues to change and evolve. I’m excited to see where it goes next.”
Let’s Go Outside
Hearing about Hello Marine’s graceful approach to creating is almost as soothing as one of her paintings. Here is an artist who understands that the magic doesn’t always happen when you force things.
“The studio is an important time, but you also have all those moments beforehand that feed you when the time comes to paint. You’ve got to feed your brain with things that inspire you so you can give your imagination space to run free. Going places, seeing an exhibition, simply spending time with people - all of this feeds my work, and allows the unconscious mind to do the work behind the scenes that I can then apply when the time comes to sit down in the studio and work on a painting.”
Natural Wonder
Growing up in the South of France, Hello Marine was surrounded by nature, being both close to the sea and to the mountains. This location nurtured a love of nature that is evident across her oeuvre. She reveals:
“If I’m feeling a bit down, I always head out into the countryside. I hope that bringing a little bit of nature in my work has a soothing and uplifting effect on the viewer.”
Hello Marine tells us that she loves the idea of her paintings becoming part of a family, an object that people associate with fond memories. She divulges:
“People often tell me that my work makes them happy, and for me, that’s the best compliment. I can’t ask for more than that.”
A selection of Hello Marine’s original paintings are available at Enter Gallery now. Explore the collection here.
