NOVEMBER 2021 ORIGINAL PAINTINGS AUCTION

As promised, I hope to be presenting my clients with a small number of brand new paintings for purchase directly through the auction process each month.

I will use the auction platform I used recently in my big studio clearance as it seemed to go pretty well. I have no idea how offering my new work in this way will go, nor how you will feel about this as my clients and followers. At this point, it's an experiment! I welcome any feedback or suggestions.  

For the first auction, I am offering 1 major work - "The Dangerous Shores", and 6 small watercolors.  All paintings can be made available framed or unframed depending on your preference and location. A small shipping charge will apply.

NOTE: If the works don't reach their reserve price, once the auction is completed, I will move them into my online store for sale at the usual market price. 

NOTE: The auction will run for 10 days. I hope this is not too long, but it gives enough time to reach people on my mailing list and through social media and word of mouth. There will be a 'BUY NOW' price placed on the items which puts a lid on the artworks price in case you just have to have it. 

It is easy to register for the auction by following the instructions here for installing the app or working directly on the website.  

NOTES ON COMING MAJOR PAINTINGS

Smaller watercolours are going to be 'light fare' using my usual celebration of our life with animals and nature. I will keep the heavier topics for the major painting.

 My upcoming works explore contemporary narratives overlain with more ancient narratives. Using this big picture method, of ducking back and forth into our deep history of story-making, I hope the viewer might be able to gain insight into how incredibly connected we are to the ancient psyche. Weaving themes from ancient scripture and storytelling, through impressions of current events and the most wonderful human condition, we arrive at some pretty interesting and unique imagery.

memory of the Garden of Eden - and whether we need to return or learn from the idea of a raw and magnificent wilderness that man has not yet disturbed and spoiled. The question can't be answered fairly unless we throw in the imaginary (spiritual and creative aspects of human thought and direction) as well as the archeological evidence of our past. 

Should what's left of our beautiful world be 'preserved' for a select few, with those few the ones who decide that they are the select few? As they get on board the 'ark' of the surviving future, are they leading the world, or are they simply greedy powerful mugs stealing the future for themselves at everyone else's expense? 

In the Bible, God became the ultimate eugenicist in the story of the great flood. We all know the story. He got cross, and wiped out the bloody mess humanity had created in order to 'start again'. There is no doubt it has crossed every one of our minds at times when we see atrocities being done within our 'garden of Eden' around the world. You can see why some eugenicists would like to 'wipe out the mess', with a great virus, a man-made disease, vaccine, or famine. But is it up to a bunch of rich elite powerful people to play the role of 'God'? 

We live such small fleeting personal lives of roughly 3 score years and 10 (72.6 is the average on earth) and thanks to all the wonderful 'technology' of our lives we have no time to think about the future of our grandkids because 'someone else' is supposed to be doing that. Well, those same 'someones' are making decisions about a big clean-up, and we might not like what they have planned.

These works, explore not only the darkness of the mess we are in, but hopefully the incredible beauty of the blessing we are bestowed by being given the capacity to use our imagination and aspiring heart to heal our world. As bleak as things seem, that human wild card offers us an opportunity. It is a miracle that we even know about the beautiful garden and the delicate nuances of love. That we know what is beautiful is a wonder in itself. That we can all agree that bird song, rainforests, and puppies are peak experiences, means that there is already agreement about what is good and right. 

How do we tap into this on a wider scale in order to create that better world for all? That would require leadership with vision, and not a bunch of rich bastards who own all the resources on earth including our arses. We ain't there yet.

PAINTINGS IN THE COMING AUCTION BELOW

These paintings will be made available via online Auction HERE (link will activate when the auction opens)

"The Dangerous Shores"
Oil on Linen 122 x 152cm 2021

The Dangerous Shores is a painting from Helen Norton's upcoming works which explore our memory of the Garden of Eden - and whether we need to return or learn from the idea of a raw and magnificent wilderness that man has not yet disturbed and spoiled. The question can't be answered fairly unless we throw in the imaginary (spiritual and creative aspects of human thought and direction) as well as the archeological evidence of our past.