Julie Vernon
Biography
Some words from Julie: My paintings provide a vision of, and stem from, an interest in our not-so-perfect world. I find beauty in the imperfect; the worn, the scarred and the weary. I take inspiration from the multi-layered graffiti and poster-clad walls of our city streets and the characters that inhabit them. I am particularly interested in those individuals who appear beset by hardship, fear or indifference. My most recent paintings deal directly with the idea of destitution, homelessness and displacement, and the chaos and solitude that it brings.
I am comfortable with both figurative and abstract styles, and whether I am painting human or animal my characters exist within a multi-layered environment of blurs, streaks and rivulets of oil paint, interspersed with printed text, familiar patterns and occasionally gold leaf. The way I create a painting can be tremendously chaotic at first with paint thrown and poured onto the canvas then areas scraped or sanded back. Text is added then virtually obliterated before being added again. Only then do I focus my attention on the main subject of the painting.
Awards
Commended Artist - Association of Animal Artists - 2013
Winner - Arqadia Best Oil - NEWA 2013
Commended Artist - West Lancashire Open Exhibition - 2013
Finalist and Commended - BBC Wildlife Artist of the Year - 2012
Commended Artist - David Shepherd Wildlife Artist of the Year - 2011
Exhibitions
On the wall - Bills and Rye, Nunnington, York - July 2014
Wildlife Exhibition, Harrison Lord Gallery, Brighouse - September 2014
On The Wall, Bils and Rye, Nunnington, York - September 2014
West Lancashire Open Exhibition, Ormskirk - 2014
National Exhibition of Wildlife Art (NEWA) - 2014
MAFA Summer Exhibition - 2014
Northern Artists, Castle Park Arts Centre, Frodsham - 2014
Association of Animal Artists, Castle Park Arts Centre, Frodsham - 2014
Waterside Open, Sale, Manchester - 2014
Affordable Art Fair, London - 2013
Association of Animal Artists, Haworth Gallery, Accrington - 2013
Light Nights Liverpool - 2013
Open Contemporary, Stockport - 2013
National Exhibition of Wildlife Art (NEWA) - 2013
West Lancashire Open Exhibition, Ormskirk - 2013
MAFA Summer Exhibition - 2013
Association of Animal Artists (Castle Park Arts Centre Frodsham) - 2013
Affordable Art Fair Bristol - 2013
Cork Street Open - 2012
West Lancashire Open Exhibition - 2012
MAFA Summer Exhibition - 2012
Association of Animal Artists - 2012
Collect Art - Lymm - Winter Exhibition - 2011
Open Up North - 2011
David Shepherd, Wildlife Artist of the Year - 2011
Best of Merseyside Exhibition - 2008
Manchester Art Fair - 2007
Surface Gallery - 2007
Art Lab - 2007
Grundy Art Gallery, Blackpool - 2006
Solaris,Blackpool - 2005 & 2006
Blackpool and Fylde College Degree Show - 2004
I am comfortable with both figurative and abstract styles, and whether I am painting human or animal my characters exist within a multi-layered environment of blurs, streaks and rivulets of oil paint, interspersed with printed text, familiar patterns and occasionally gold leaf. The way I create a painting can be tremendously chaotic at first with paint thrown and poured onto the canvas then areas scraped or sanded back. Text is added then virtually obliterated before being added again. Only then do I focus my attention on the main subject of the painting.
Awards
Commended Artist - Association of Animal Artists - 2013
Winner - Arqadia Best Oil - NEWA 2013
Commended Artist - West Lancashire Open Exhibition - 2013
Finalist and Commended - BBC Wildlife Artist of the Year - 2012
Commended Artist - David Shepherd Wildlife Artist of the Year - 2011
Exhibitions
On the wall - Bills and Rye, Nunnington, York - July 2014
Wildlife Exhibition, Harrison Lord Gallery, Brighouse - September 2014
On The Wall, Bils and Rye, Nunnington, York - September 2014
West Lancashire Open Exhibition, Ormskirk - 2014
National Exhibition of Wildlife Art (NEWA) - 2014
MAFA Summer Exhibition - 2014
Northern Artists, Castle Park Arts Centre, Frodsham - 2014
Association of Animal Artists, Castle Park Arts Centre, Frodsham - 2014
Waterside Open, Sale, Manchester - 2014
Affordable Art Fair, London - 2013
Association of Animal Artists, Haworth Gallery, Accrington - 2013
Light Nights Liverpool - 2013
Open Contemporary, Stockport - 2013
National Exhibition of Wildlife Art (NEWA) - 2013
West Lancashire Open Exhibition, Ormskirk - 2013
MAFA Summer Exhibition - 2013
Association of Animal Artists (Castle Park Arts Centre Frodsham) - 2013
Affordable Art Fair Bristol - 2013
Cork Street Open - 2012
West Lancashire Open Exhibition - 2012
MAFA Summer Exhibition - 2012
Association of Animal Artists - 2012
Collect Art - Lymm - Winter Exhibition - 2011
Open Up North - 2011
David Shepherd, Wildlife Artist of the Year - 2011
Best of Merseyside Exhibition - 2008
Manchester Art Fair - 2007
Surface Gallery - 2007
Art Lab - 2007
Grundy Art Gallery, Blackpool - 2006
Solaris,Blackpool - 2005 & 2006
Blackpool and Fylde College Degree Show - 2004
