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Stuart Bush, Hopes and Fears

When I decided I wanted to be a painter

When I decided I wanted to be a painter As a young man, life at times felt so hard and unfair. I had all these feelings of angst and alienation, and I realised they felt heightened when I walked around London.  In the city, I was drawn to the extreme differences between abundance and scarcity.  All the beautiful and contentious moments from the streets, the architecture and the mad rush of daily life swept through me with amazing speed.   I asked myself, why are these feeling of anguish heightened in the city? I wasn’t sure, but I thought there had to be a higher purpose and reason for all this. … Read More »When I decided I wanted to be a painter

Stuart Bush Longing for change

I am longing for change

I am longing for change I keep thinking that before World War Two, and the rise of commercialism and mass communication, keeping people’s attention must have been easy. When it came to looking at art back then, everyone’s eyes must have been used to following the lines around a traditional representation painting.  However, since the Covid-19 pandemic, I now wonder how the world is going to look. Will it be the same again? I feel like this is a rare moment in our lives. I am sure I will always look back at and remember it. As the world shrinks and cuts back there is an opportunity in this chaos… Read More »I am longing for change

Stuart Bush Studio Notes, Just a feeling and not the truth

Making life visible

Have you ever noticed we arrive at our destination, without realising how we got there? Without realising we tune out of surroundings. All that we notice is what is vital to get us to our destination. We miss so much, we are so wrapped up with what is going on in our heads. I started to take great pleasure in noticing and drawing attention to what I feel is being ignored. My intention is to make you feel a connection. Like you’re truly learning to see. Making life visible.   Visit: StuartBushStudio.com

Stuart Bush Studio Notes, play his base desires

Why I paint?

Why I paint? When I think about why I paint, l find it difficult to put it into words. The answer is complicated and complex. I know that as a painter l learn something new every day. I stand in front of the blank canvas, not knowing what is going to happen or how will the work develop?   When I am painting, I feel like I am doing what I am here to do. It is easy to assume I already know how to do it; however, everyday painting teaches me that I have so much more to learn. I feel exhilarated when things go right. However, the other… Read More »Why I paint?

Stuart Bush Studio Notes, death and art

Everything is abstract

“Everything is abstract, in my language of paint” I love going for walks, and I often take my camera with me. I sometimes feel like a child discovering nature. As I walk, I react to the spaces. I have come to realise that if I look at what I want to express long enough, I can see everything in shapes, forms, lines and edges. These forces leave marks in my mind and l discover aspects that I have never seen or described before. Everything becomes abstract in my language of paint.   I take lots of photographs, they function like preparation sketches or reference material taking me back to that… Read More »Everything is abstract

Stuart Bush, Francis Bacon

The influential work of Francis Bacon

How the influential work of Francis Bacon inspired me to become a painter As a young adult, I had lots of feelings that confused me and I often didn’t know how to deal with them, words just didn’t seem to fit. My thoughts and experiences felt on the far side of normal. Often I thought l was the only one who felt this unease.  When I saw Francis Bacon’s work in a London gallery, it was a remarkable moment for me. It was the first time I had seen someone challenge the intense feelings I felt. Bacon depicted the complexity and chaos that was going on around me and inside… Read More »The influential work of Francis Bacon

Stuart Bush, How does new art work come about? things that catch my eye

How does a new art work come about?

Things that catch my eye There is a belief that if you allow yourself, it be distracted from earning money and a professional career like being an accountant or a lawyer; it is to play away from what is essential. I’m afraid I have to disagree. Since I was a child, I have allowed myself to be pulled down a rabbit hole. When most people move on with turning their life away from play, I have stuck at it, allowing myself to indulge in a belief that an interest in what I notice is of value. I have given perception, high importance in my life. I feel lucky to be… Read More »How does a new art work come about?

Overcoming fear, one brushstroke at a time, stuart bush, stuart bush studio, contemporary artist

One brushstroke at a time

Overcoming fear by taking one brushstroke at a time I want to share with you, a story about how I overcame my biggest obstacle and my biggest fear. As I look back to when I finished my post-graduate course in Fine Art in 2007, aged 29 years, I am still surprised how naive I was. I thought I only needed to display my artwork in a proper gallery, it would be seen by someone in the know, and I would be an overnight success.  How wrong can I get it!  I realise there is no such thing ‘god’s gift’. Unsurprisingly quick success didn’t happen. Instead, shortly after graduation, I had a… Read More »One brushstroke at a time

Stuart Bush Blog, Learning how to live as an artist, The slipping of pattern and form

Learning how to live as an artist

Learning how to live as an artist – Stuart Bush Studio Notes It feels like it has taken me a long time to work out what I think is important and to trust myself.  When it comes to sharing my errors and experiences, I want to be an open book.  There is a lot to learn from small discoveries, successful experiments and breakthroughs, in the studio, in life and from a positive personal outlook.  There is also stuff that I wish someone had shared with me.  I use to hate making mistakes.  However, now, my perspective on how to live as an artist has turned full circle.  I am grateful… Read More »Learning how to live as an artist

Dreaming about success

Dreaming about success Often when I turn on the shower and step in, I turn on a shower of thoughts and start dreaming. I’m not sure why it happens in the shower, but I think it is a favourable place to be flooded with thoughts and ideas. My mind also, unfortunately, wanders when I am painting. Over time, I have realised I have become a professional daydreamer. This is the wrong time and the wrong place to be dreaming about success and imagining the future. I feel the need to gain some self-mastery of my busy creative mind. I used to think dreaming about the future was my reward for… Read More »Dreaming about success