Hannah is a digital media editor who works in a range of creative fields in her professional career. When she is not working she enjoys acrylic painting, painting stunning landscapes of the south west, alongside her current series of floral paintings which she has recently produced art prints of. She is a true creative through and through so we really wanted delve into her ways of working and what inspires and drives her work.
Tell us a bit about you, who are you and what do you do?
Hi Im Hannah, in my day job I work as a digital media editor, this includes filming and editing videos, photography, podcasts ect. In my free time I am an acrylic painter, at the moment I am working on a floral series and several landscapes, but I also create moving paintings with stop motion.
What are your hobbies and interests?
I love to do anything creative and trying out new types of art, one of my latest experiments was cyanotypes of florals. Last year I also got into running and I am *hoping* to do a 10k at some point.
How did you develop your passion for painting?
I have always been able to draw and paint since I was little and I have always loved it. My parents and my grandma are also into art and always encourage me. I love learning how to paint new things and slowly seeing improvements.
What inspires you to paint?
I love seeing other people having a passion and drive for their work and it inspires me to do the same with mine. I think that is why platforms like Instagram are great for artists because it allows you to get inspiration from others on things like technique or presentation.
Who inspires you to paint or develop your style in a certain way?
William Kentridge is an artist look to for style on stop motion, I like the way you can see the remnants of previous frames build up as the picture moves. Alexa Meade is my absolute favourite artist, I love the way she uses bold, bright colours to create a 2D effect on 3D objects.
What is your favourite South West area for inspiration?
I am originally from Plymouth, but at the moment I am living in Bath, which is so pretty for its Georgian architecture, and because there are so many hills you get some amazing views. I definitely miss South Devon and Cornwall landscapes which I quite often use for my paintings- however it’s always good to have a change of scenery and mix up your point of view.
What is your usual set up and go to equipment?
My usual set up for painting is normally sat on my bedroom floor, window open, paints and brushes all over the place. I have just bought a GoPro which I like to use the time-lapse function but also I have been using for reference videos. For taking photos I use my Canon 550D its about 10 years old but it still does the job.
How do you get into your painting zone?
To get into my painting zone I have to be invested in what I am painting. Normally there is a point where I absolutely hate the painting, but you’ve got to think of the end goal and push through that phase to get back into the zone. I love to binge watch a Netflix series while I paint, I often find that I have watched a whole series but have no idea what has happened because I was concentrating on my work.
What is your favourite piece of work you have created and why?
At the moment my favourite piece of work is a commission I made for my friend which mixed different Australian and UK landscapes together. It was really fun to design and definitely more of a challenge than a normal landscape piece.
Where do you see your work progressing? Is there an end goal?
I would love to do a series of moving paintings in the future, they take up a lot of time and space so I would really like to get a studio space where I can work on them.
Any advice, hints or tips for people starting out?
My advice for people starting out is to practice every single day, it could be something tiny or part of a bigger project. Even if it’s just something that turns out to be rubbish, it will help you to practise and develop a style.
Where can we find your work? You can find my work on my Instagram: @hanvigus_art or on Etsy: https://www.etsy.com/uk/shop/hannahvigusart