It's that time of year again

To wish you Happy Holidays from my 80s home perm! I hope you have a joyous and relaxing festive time. 

Come back next Friday for my year-end review post. Thanks so much for your support. - Megan

Dream and be too much

I am pretty much already in "holiday mode" or really it could be called taking care of a sick cat mode. I have missed a few studio video visits due to this and honestly, I don't have a lot to say in this blog. Thanks for your patience. Theo seems to have turned a corner and is almost back to his pre (recent) hospitalisation vibe. There is no denying his kidney condition has progressed but he is doing amazingly well and is stable again and I am so relieved and grateful. 

The weather has turned cold, dark, and snowy - so that also encourages a bit of hibernation. So, I am taking the hint (now that I can relax a bit from Theo's recent tribulations). 

You know where all my art is - go look at it or even buy it if you are able. 

But more importantly, listen to music and dance. Take a nap. Do some breathing exercises. Have a cup of hot chocolate, get yourself a gift, give someone your opinions about something you didn't realise you had opinions about, keep yourself guessing, and laugh with a friend. 

Dream and be too much. Yes, please be too much... 

Like these legends. Until next week, keep fighting - you are beautiful. 

Little Edie Beale and Andy Warhol

Last chance to view: Divinations, Declarations and Whispers

Whew! This week! This past month really. Whew, deep breath in, deep breath out... My sweet cat Theo has been unwell and has been under veterinarian care since Tuesday morning. He is due to come home from the hospital later today. The chronic kidney disease is progressing and that's the reality. I can't wait to get him back home from the hospital later today. 

All my thoughts have been on him so I haven't been promoting the fact that today is the last day of my exhibition "Divinations, Declarations and Whispers" online at Starling & Campbell. I also missed posting my Tuesday Studio Video Visit for the past two weeks. Go have a rummage around my YouTube channel and please subscribe if you haven't. 

Theo comes first - I am sure you understand. 

However, if you haven't yet visited the exhibition, or if you want to go back so you can float around the gallery from face to face and really dive in and see them as you would in person, then please visit the exhibition today. They are all waiting for you there. I am delighted that so many of you were able to visit the exhibition in this way. I will try to have more exhibitions in this way, perhaps quarterly along with some salon-style virtual studio sale events. 

Visit the exhibition today: bit.ly/starlingcampbell

Also I enjoyed creating a special line of t-shirts and totes to mark the ocassion of the exhibition - thank you to everyone who has purchased one - it really helps to support me, my art, and my wonderful cat. Buy T-shirts and Totes: https://gutlessapparel.teemill.com

And of course, my wee shop is still stocked with my prints, smaller orginal works on paper and canvas, and even framed small works. I know I have been pushing the sales lately and my blog has been less about the thoughts around creating the work. The thoughts will come again soon - when I start making new work in the new year. 

Thanks for your patience and thanks for your views, likes, shares, subscribes and purchases and your kind encouraging words. It all adds up and keeps me working. I am grateful for the opportunity. 

Like the art I create and share? Leave me a tip!

Special thanks and appreciation to my Ko-fi Supporters. 

These wonderful folks have supported me over on Ko-fi in the last 30 days: 

Jennifer Libby Fay, Tamsin Haggis, Pat Bremner, Jen Arbuckle, and Muriel Prince.

I will be posting my December Playlist for my supporters soon!! xx

Thanks to all of my patrons near and far, past, present, and future. 

And here's what it's all about... Oor wee Theo. 

Theo is the best curator and friend

I'm dreaming of an artful Christmas

Look at the gorgeous Christmas window at the fabulous Solo Gallery in Innerleithen, Scotland! This really made my week! The window is currently featuring 5 pieces of my work. I'm dreaming of an abstract Christmas...

Solo Gallery was a brand new gallery in the Scottish Borders and opened right before the pandemic struck. Kate, the wonderful gallerist, was excited (and still is) about what she could bring and create there and I was (and still am) so excited to be part of her plans and delighted that she had agreed to take my work. 

Needless to say, everything shut down for extended periods of time and some plans and hopes were dashed. Yet Kate kept on going bringing brilliant art to the borders and she kept showing my work. Happily, she sold a piece of my mine in October. We were both delighted! 

Kate has shown a quiet dedication, flexibility, and tenacity that I find really inspiring. This is no easy task and she could have shipped my work back to me at any time but here we are almost three years later and my work is in the window. Thank you, Kate!

Support Solo Gallery - pop by if you are in the Scottish borders or visit her website to buy fabulous works of art from wherever you may be. 

The window of the gallery looks festive and bright - such a lovely and friendly place to visit

Now let's talk about my wearable collection of eco-friendly t-shirts and totes! From today through Sunday at midnight enjoy free shipping/free post on all orders in the UK. So if you have had your eye on a shirt or tote or need the perfect gift this season, this is a great weekend to save a few pennies. Feel good about supporting my art and the planet at the same time. Shop here: https://gutlessapparel.teemill.com/ 

And that brings us to my exhibition "Divinations, Declarations and Whispers." We are getting close to the final week of the exhibition so if you haven't spent some time yet in the online-only gallery or want to go back and spend some time with your favourites please plan to visit now. The show closes on the night of the 9th of December. Again it has been a real treat to share this body of work with you in this way and I have enjoyed hearing from folks near and far. Share the exhibition with a friend or post the link on social media, then meet up and have a coffee and chat about it. Building community around art is what it is all about for me and I want you to be part of it. https://bit.ly/starlingcampbell

The Starling & Campbell Gallery awaits! 

As I mentioned in a previous post, my building will not be open for open studios this year. Please support my work while you are holiday shopping (or any time) by visiting my ko-fi shop which has a wide variety of mounted small original works as well as prints. I have recently restocked my shop (my prices there range from £20-325). I am always happy to answer more questions, take additional photos, or share videos with you to help with your purchase, and of course, my studio is open by appointment. https://ko-fi.com/meganchapman/shop

This has been a tough year and like so many, I keep going, I keep creating, and I keep sharing because this is what I was born to do. Thank you.

Like what I share? Leave a tip.

Shop Small Feel Good: Art is the Answer!

Here we are, it's Black Friday, and then Small Business Saturday, and then Cyber Monday - it's a weekend where you can choose to shop big... Or shop small and support your independent makers and artists. I hope you will choose to shop with me and my peers! My wee ko-fi shop is restocked and I have a deal for you!

Use THANKS20 or click the link below for 20% off everything. Prints, Originals, and even some professionally framed smaller Canvas Paintings! The discount is good until midnight on November 29th. So get shopping and know with each purchase you are making a real difference in my life. Feel free to share the code/link with your friends too. Take another look in my shop if you haven't in a while - there are over 60 pieces available and with the code/link the prices range from £16 - 260!

https://ko-fi.com/meganchapman/link/THANKS20

If eco-friendly and artful t-shirts and totes are more your style - I have you covered! They make great gifts too and teemill is a company with an ethos after my own heart. There are several styles and loads of sizes to choose from. Shop here: https://gutlessapparel.teemill.com

My exhibition Divinations, Declarations and Whispers continues so please visit this online-only art experience if you haven't already. All the work is for sale and the majority of the portraits in the exhibition are priced at £270 (and that includes worldwide shipping!). If you have any questions regarding a purchase click the question icon next to the painting to send me an inquiry. If you know you want to buy just click the $ icon next to the piece.

Here is this week's video visit featuring some of the wonderful reviews folks have left me. Thank you all so much. I am delighted with the response and being able to present my work in a more accessible way. 

Last but not least, I do have a wide variety of paintings (small and large) that are available from my studio in Leith, Edinburgh. There will be no open studios this year in the building but my studio is always open by appointment and I am usually available to meet patrons there with just a bit of notice so if you find yourself in a last-minute worry for the perfect artful gift, just message me and I will meet you there.

Thank you all so much for your support - I honestly couldn't do this without you. 

Love what I do? Leave me a tip!

Wear your art on your sleeve! Exhibition T-shirts and Totes!

Setting the scene at my exhibition currently at Starling & Campbell

Last weekend's opening of Divinations, Declarations and Whispers was just incredible! Thank you to everyone who came along and who shared the exhibition across social media and beyond. It is a joy to present this body of work to you all in this manner and to connect with communities old and new, and patrons near and far. I am delighted to share that 1,214 visitors from over 10 countries have visited in the first week and two pieces have sold! Thank you all so much for your enthusiasm and support for this body of work and this exhibition. I can't tell you how happy it makes me! Special thanks to all the early collectors of my "accidental portraits" from 2017 until now while those works flew mostly under the radar. 

For those that might need a bit of tech support or personal guidance for navigating this online-only exhibition, I created the Tuesday Studio Video Visit just for you. Click HERE if you missed it.

The exhibition is on for a month, so if you haven't yet paid it a visit or if you want to spend some more time lingering in Starling & Campbell - please feel free to visit as often as you wish. Do your favourite pieces change from viewing to viewing? The gallery is open when you are. https://bit.ly/starlingcampbell 

In other exciting exhibition-related news, I am pleased to now offer a selection of exhibition t-shirts and totes! These are available in a unisex standard fit size XS-XXXXL and in a fitted style in UK sizes 8-18 (please check the size chart if you are ordering from outside the UK). 

Click here to shop! https://gutlessapparel.teemill.com/ These t-shirts and totes make great eco-friendly gifts for yourself or a loved one and are also a great way to support my work. Thank you. 

Exhibition selections!

And that's all I have for you this week. Thank you again to all my patrons near and far, I couldn't do this work without you. Until next week, enjoy Divinations, Declarations, and Whispers and stay warm and well. 

Divinations, Declarations, and Whispers OPENS TODAY!!

I am delighted to share news of my latest exhibition opening TODAY! Please join me for Divinations, Declarations, and Whispers. November 11- December 9, 2022. Featuring twenty-two portraits created this year in my studio at the Out of the Blue Drill Hall in Edinburgh, Scotland. This is my first exhibition of portraiture in my 27 years of dedication to abstract painting and I am thrilled to share these works with my collectors and patrons all over the world in this accessible, digital format. All works are for sale with free international and local shipping included in the price. Join me throughout the next four weeks as we get to know these faces in all their mystery and splendour, together at a distance. Get a drink and some nibbles and click here to attend! 

Statement: 

Wobbly cheeks, eyes impatient and smudged, mouths quick and dirty - that's how I work - I don't have time to waste. Spirits come forward. Rude and rushed - poor and floating - they become one. Are they kings, queens, or something in between? What are they thinking? Do they know something we don't? 

We all like a face - even one we don't know and one we don't understand. These faces are often not of any particular race or gender, and some hold a different standard of beauty with their smeared eyes and mouths. Some are wrapped up in emotion, power, or curiosity. 

These portraits express the past eight years of my life in Scotland. Sharing fragments of self, various characters, feelings, and my thoughts captured in an impulsive charcoal line. This exhibition culminates in a personal expressive rebellion and showcases the faces that jumped to the front of the queue.

https://bit.ly/starlingcampbell