Roses and other florals have always been a part of my visual language cropping up in various bodies of work until they became my work.
Fifteen years ago I worked in the corporate world as an advertising art director and dreamed of painting. I longed to paint and be an artist to make my living 100 percent of the time.
One night I dreamed I saw myself painting a giant red rose, as an opera diva in a red dress sang in the middle huge black velvety auditorium.
Consequently, I felt compelled to paint the canvas I had foreseen in my dream, which in real life measured seven feet square.
When a friend purchased the painting, I felt the need to fill the void left by its departure, so I painted some more roses. After a while these too sold, so in between other bodies of work, I would paint these beautiful flowers.
Coincidentally SA Tourism would much later invite me to paint live at The Sydney Opera House for an event they staged, and I found myself fulfilling the dream I’d had previously, of painting with opera!
During a trip to Paris in 1998, I found myself drawn to the elegant parks and gardens. The rose was a constant signature in these environs, particularly Parc de Bagatelle which has a formal rose garden with thousands of varieties of roses. Another favourite was Parc Monceau.
Upon my return, memories of huge bouquets of peony roses glimpsed in alleyway flower boutiques inspired me to revisit roses as a serious subject matter, in all their fleshy forms and voluptuous colours, resulting in a solo exhibition in Sydney, December 2001.
The Blooms exhibition was captured by a national magazine and my paintings were in hot demand with many people wanting to learn how to paint them.
At this stage I had moved with my two children under two to South Australia and renovated a stone barn so I could be a full-time mother and painter.
I worked out how I could give total newbie painters a wonderful painting experience and confirmed the Blooms Painting Method that I could teach others.
My very first ONE DAY BLOOMS WORKSHOP group was elated with their results. I discovered that I loved teaching too. That was back in 2002.
I then went on to develop longer programs working on larger canvases as well, and now I teach 2, 3 and 4 day painting workshops across Australia, New Zealand, the USA and France where I founded French Art School in 2016.
For further information on workshops visit https://artscreativehub.com/workshops/ which has general information and scroll down further on the same page to view the current workshop schedule and booking links.
Since 2012 I’ve written 3 online painting programs so anyone anywhere can learn to paint BLOOMS.
For the USA it’s combined with a live 3 day painting option. Visit http://paintbloomsusa.com/
For online weekly e-lessons visit https://howtopaintblooms.com/
Recently, I’ve been Editor in Chief of LIVING ART MAGAZINE. Visit www.livingartmagazine.com for your free subscription. It’s an opportunity to share inspiration in a free digital magazine.
I’ve shared my story of how I made a living from my art as a single mum and travelled the world to share with others what is possible!
Visit www.makemoneyfromartbook.com
My children are now 18 and 20. My daughter Lily is currently taking a gap year in Paris as an au pair. My son Hannibal is training as a portrait artist and astounds me with his paintings regularly.
I wrote a book about my art journey as an inspiration and info resource for artists. Visit www.makemoneyfromartbook.com
As an empty nester I get to hang out with my fabulous students and assist to take their creativity to another level. It’s amazing the joy this brings others as well as myself. I see my students find a whole new purpose and connect with new possibilities for themselves.
Often my students are with their families and responsibilities. When they do make the time to be creative they are off and running. It’s super exciting to observe my students reclaiming their untapped creative selves.
The Jacqueline Coates Blooms Painting Method has been buffed and honed over 16 years so that my students have a SYSTEM of painting they can apply. It doesn’t rely on having talent.
Everyone gets great results and learns my no fail method. I’ve won awards the last three years running for my work.
Teaching and helping others to grow their skills and confidence is my passion. I love the environment of inspiration and friendship created at the workshops.
I hope to see you at one of my teaching events soon!
Check the link at; https://artscreativehub.com/workshops/
Jacqueline Coates