Gill Bustamante is a professional artist based in Sussex and I paint original landscapes, seascapes, animal, and bird inspired paintings in oil on large canvases. My painting style is a fusion of Expressionist, Impressionist, a little Art Nouveau and something I refer to as ‘Memory Impressionism’. I coined this phrase because my artwork is often created after visiting or walking somewhere I have an affinity for. I then make a painting that captures my impression of that place along with the colours and the way I felt about it from memory.
Motivations:
My paintings often have slightly mystical elements within them. I try to instill energy and answers in them that I like to think will help bring good fortune to their buyers. I may have the body of a middle-aged woman but I have the mind and imagination of an 8 year old and am delighted that I can indulge this inclination in my painting and actually get paid for it. I am not alone in my desire to find magic in the spaces, plants, trees, and creatures of nature I think. The main factor that has helped me develop my unique painting style was probably my six years studying art at college which was well spent learning to draw skilfully and learning about composition, colours, tones, and shapes. I know my basics quite well and so I can get away with experimental painting with confidence to do things that are not tried and tested. I think that the best paintings in this world have ‘little souls’ woven into them by the artist and this is what makes people desire them (or not). This is what I try to do. Sometimes I succeed well and sometimes I don’t but it keeps me endlessly entertained.
Bio:
As a child, I taught myself to draw and paint by copying animals and horses out of books on an almost daily basis. Then in 1979, I did a foundation course at Chelsea and then a degree course at Brighton where I graduated in 1983 with a fine art degree in sculpture. I then worked in a studio on the seafront for a while making sculptures with an architect for clubs and hotels.
On moving to East Grinstead in the late 80's, I began painting for an art agent that specialized in animal, people and bespoke portraits and soon became skilled at painting dogs and horses in a classical style. I also took on mural painting commissions and wrote and illustrated a few children's books.
In the late 90's I began teaching art adult education courses for Central Sussex College as well as running my own art courses. I have exhibited at the Mall Galleries, London, Chelsea open exhibition, Chequer Mead, East Grinstead, The Hawth Theatre, Crawley, Sheffield Park, Brighton festival, Art at 5 Gallery, Brighton, Wills Art Warehouse London, Gabriel Fine Art, London, Blue Moon Gallery Tunbridge Wells, Shoreham gallery, Ashdown Gallery, Forest Row and many others.