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Towards the end of last year, Rob Edmondson and I decided to stage an exhibition that displayed our different approaches to creating large scale original art – one highly detailed and realistic and the other more loose and sometimes dream-like. We felt it would be interesting to see how the two styles blended together and sometimes crossed over.

Rob’s work is familiar to many people since his appearance on BBC TV’s ‘Home is Where the Art is’ in 2020 with Nick Knowles, where he was joint winner. The objective was to win a commission for a selected couple and produce a piece of art that had special meaning to them. The resulting painting featured Ashness Bridge, near Keswick, a favourite place of theirs, and a cyclist, (their hobby) and the flowing water represented their love of music. Since then Rob has completed many such commissions for people around the UK, working with them to develop a brief that encapsulates their lives and loves and fits perfectly into their home.

It was great fun planning and preparing for the exhibition, with the help of Rob’s framer Mitch Longworth, who did a fabulous job of some frames for me for the first time.

The exhibition was held at BL6 studios in Horwich on the weekend of 14th/15th July, with a preview on the evening of Friday 13th June with a great turn out by both our contacts and invited guests. It was good to get to know Julia and John at BL6 studios as well.

Left to right: ‘The Calm'(RE) SOLD, Surfer’s Paradise Cape Town (JW), False Bay Cape Town(JW), The Hodder (RE)

Left to right: The Hodder( (RE), Isolation (RE) SOLD, Genesis (JW), Scale (JW), The Shallows (JW) SOLD, Blue Danube JW) SOLD

We were pleased to sell 10 pieces of work over the weekend and are hoping this will be the first of many future joint ventures.

We are now researching other suitable venues for future exhibitions in the North West and are continually producing new work and undertaking commissions.

Our quest is to find homes with big blank walls that deserve a big, beautiful original painting!

If you couldn’t make it to the exhibition, all my new paintings can soon be seen in my virtual gallery, many of which can be purchased as limited edition prints (1-5) which are produced to order, with card mount ready for framing.

It is the ART in a home that makes it vibrant and exclusive, gives it edge and makes it so unique to the residents. You could even say a home is incomplete without art. If carefully chosen, it displays how you perceive yourself in the world and what moves you.

However, choosing a painting that defines you is far more difficult than simply choosing a piece that matches your furnishings.

While the process may seem daunting at first, it can actually be so inspiring that picking out pieces that bring you joy and resonate with you will continue to give you pleasure every day.

When creating a painting it goes through many stages, many layers of paint, many changes in direction, but this is all part of the process that creates depth, effects and moods. It is only finished when it evokes a certain feeling in the painter, a surge of excitement, a warmth, some kind of emotion that says ‘yes! it’s right now’. That is the feeling that will make someone want to own it and live with it. What they own is something unique; they own a piece of that artist and all the years of practice that resulted in that moment.

If you are still searching for that special painting please join us at our exhibition ‘Contrasting Visions – Landscapes and Dreams’ to view a large selection that may just inspire you!

Working hard on new work for my exhibition in collaboration with Rob Edmondson in June – open Saturday and Sunday 14th/15th June 12noon to 4pm, with a special preview event on Friday 13th June. Email me – jackie@heapeygallery.co.uk if you would like to come to the preview. Eight new paintings to date of assorted sizes, up to 1m x 1m, mostly abstract, but with some realism reflecting a recent trip to Cape Town and other travels. Lots of new Lancashire landscapes from Rob too. Plenty more to come before we get it all together!

4 – in – 1 painting in acrylic with cold wax and oils, works as one together or separately for a change. 50cm x 50cm each 1m x 1m approx together!

Primary were pleased to be working with Livewell Counselling again recently to re-fresh their branding and provide new marketing material. The brief was to re-vise the now well-established logo, designed by Primary in 2017, to move the focus away from child-related therapy to adult and supervision. This required new imagery and a new colourway, replacing the original pink/blue with a ‘more earthy’ combination, as requested by our client. We have further developed the bird/hands theme with a contemporary jade/gold colourway, and complementary hues throughout the imagery.

Previous Livewell branding.

New branding – leaflet, pull up banner, promotional mugs.

I was pleased to take part last week in a charity event I helped organise at Shaw Hill Golf Club. Hayley Wright, owner of The Secret Closet, staged a fabulous show with models from among the glamorous lady members wearing some gorgeous outfits for spring and summer. Over £700 was raised for Inspire Youth Zone Chorley and 15 stall holders contributed to the night providing some overdue retail therapy for the 140 guests, with gifts, jewellery, accessories, cards and (guess what) paintings – by Heapey Gallery non other!

Also there, taking amazing photos, was Ian Fletcher of ISF Photography, who donated his services to the cause, and took this great shot for me as well.

Here’s what happened at my first ever solo art exhibition at Town Mill Galleries in my home town, Lyme Regis, Dorset.

I travelled down in a hired van driven by my son, Connor, on Wednesday 25th August, with paintings piled high, and we were met by my sister Gilly at the Town Mill Gallery, ready to help unload and set up (after a 5 hour drive).

Next day was the launch event at 10am with family and invited guests, and even the mayor to open it officially! Also pictured here with me, Gilly and Connor in the photo are my Uncle Tony and cousin Simon Hewlett (father and brother of Jamie Hewlett of Gorillaz fame). I last saw them six years ago at Jamie’s first solo exhibition in the Saatchi Gallery, London. My friends at ‘Lyme Online’ were very supportive with advertising and promotion prior to the event.

Within the first half hour I had sold the large original of Lyme Regis and 4 limited edition prints of the same piece, and by the end of Day One three other originals – Rock Pools, The Shallows, and Docklands – so 8 pieces in all. Fantastic!

The original of my Lyme Regis painting was snapped up by a local couple, which got things off to a brilliant start!

This honeymoon couple were given a wedding present of ‘money to buy a painting’ and bought this to remind them of their stay in Lyme.

The Shallows original sold on Day One.

Docklands was bought by a local couple who also have a flat in London Docklands.

Connor was with me all day helping and, in the break before the evening session, we donned Heapey Gallery t-shirts and went to the beach for a swim and ice cream, making the most of the hot sunny weather.

Over the course of the week until 1st September I sold three more large originals – Rainbow Dragonfly 2, Water’s Edge and Lyme Bay, and another five prints, making a total of 16 sales.

“We both love the picture. I’m so glad you had a great first solo exhibition, but not surprised. We got home last night and this morning it was straight on the wall!”


Water’s Edge original was bought by some Gorillaz fans!

Johanna is a local lady and has this view from her attic window.

It was a great experience and I had a huge amount of very encouraging feedback.

Not only was there a fantastic craft brewery right opposite (Lyme Regis Brewery) but a fabulous working water mill one side of me, a Tapas restaurant,The Strawberry Tree, next door and a practicing potter my near neighbour. Who could ask for more?
inside the watermill
I’m now looking out for opportunities to have a similar exhibition locally here in Lancashire. Watch this space!