Naive Art – Top Picks

19 December, 2018

19 December, 2018

Naive art can come in all shapes and sizes, colours and styles but if there is one thing we love about this art genre it is quirkiness! We should say from the outset that we are referring to the general aesthetic and style of a painting being naive here rather than the literal definition of naive art being completed by an artist without professional training. L.S. Lowry, for instance, is often referred to as a ‘naive’ artist despite having studied painting for many years.

Our top picks have been chosen for their individuality in style and overall aesthetic. All artists are available to commission artworks should you have any specific requirements and we offer fast, insured worldwide delivery – please get in touch with us for more information. We hope you like them as much as we do and if you would like to see more by any individual artist just follow the link or click below to see all naive art currently for sale in our art gallery:

VIEW ALL NAIVE ART FOR SALE

Sunita Khedekar

Sunita Khedekar was born and raised in a traditional Indian family in Mumbai. She graduated in Applied Arts and Fine Arts from Asia’s premier art school, Sir J.J Institute of Applied Art in Mumbai, 1991. After graduation she worked in advertising agency as a visualiser and illustrator. In late 1999, Sunita Khedekar relocated to the UK and, since then, she has concentrated on painting, inspired by the beautiful English landscape, the symmetrical architectural style and the seasonal change of hues all around her, combined with her nostalgia of India.

While the subject is English, her treatment of it as a colourful patchwork recalls her Indian origins. Colour, shape or texture are enough to give her an idea for a painting and her poetic work is a diary in which she shows the state of her emotions. The artist guides the viewer through her personal universe while leaving him to free to his own interpretation.

From left to right ‘Sailing Town’ (20 x 20 inches), ‘Love Is In The Air’ (32 x 32 inches) and ‘Our House’ (24 x 24 inches). All Sunita’s original paintings are completed in acrylic on canvas and often include further detailing with mosaic tiles or modelling clay to provide relief.

Rozanne Bell – Colourful Naive Art

The second of our naive artists to make our top picks is the talented and best selling UK artist of 2016, Rozanne Bell.

“Ever since I first picked up a paintbrush with my mother as a little girl, the compulsion to paint has dominated my life. I know that the extraordinary colours, light and contrasts of Zimbabwe where I grew up and had to leave twelve years ago, are to blame. Art became and has ever been my friend, supporting my children and me throughout”.

Starting with exhibitions of animals and flowers at the age of sixteen, Rozanne Bell has expanded her repertoire to include landscapes and country scenes, harbours, twilight and moon light scenes and even space and galaxy paintings.

Above features one of Rozanne’s moonlit harbour scenes titled ‘Sailing Into The Night’ and measuring 36 x 18 inches (unframed) and 45 x 27 inches (framed). Whilst primarily completed in acrylic Roz Bell finishes many of her paintings with a resin which, once set, completes an almost glass-like sheen. The featured painting above is sold but click to view Rozanne Bell’s artist page for available paintings for sale.

Alan Smith

A naive artist in the true sense, Alan Smith has had no professional training but concentrated on painting full time following retirement as an Engineer. Entirely self taught, his ability to adapt and improve his technique has enabled him to develop a unique style in his paintings. Alan began painting in watercolours, but now specialises in working in acrylics and oils creating scenes of the South West of England in his own characteristic style.

Constantly striving to improve, refine and even reinvent his style Alan’s paintings have been very popular with our clients and it is easy to see why!

From left to right ‘Rolling Hills’ (16 x 16 inches unframed), ‘Short Walk Home’ (12 x 12 inches unframed) and ‘Over the Fields II’ (16 x 16 inches unframed). All paintings are original oil paintings on board, now sold but view Alan’s artist page to see current paintings available for sale.

Sean Durkin – Lowry Style Naive Art

Sean Durkin, full of irony and narrative, is simultaneously playful and powerful in his paintings. Now an acclaimed artist with a loyal following, Sean’s path to becoming an artist is quite the tale, further adding to the impact of his work.

In 1972, his father, John Durkin, stole and held ransom a Lowry painting of Middlesbrough Town Hall and Saint Hilda’s Church from the local art gallery. John stated that he would return the painting if the Lord Mayor raffled his underpants for charity. In addition he demanded that the gallery received a better alarm system and opened on Sundays “to allow the working man to get some culture”. Only a boy of eight at the time, Sean recalls coming downstairs the following morning to find the stolen painting on the mantelpiece.

The atmosphere of the painting and the ‘matchstick’ people as they scurried around the scene fascinated Sean. He did not realise it at the time, but the painting would have a profound effect on his life, and ultimately inspire him to become an artist himself.

Kev Munday – Quirky Naive Art

And last but not least in our naive art top picks we have the brilliant Kev Munday. Kev’s colourful characters have propelled him to be named in an article by The Telegraph as one of five ‘British Artists To Invest In’. In 2017, his art continued to grow in popularity across Europe, with exhibitions in France, Belgium and The Netherlands and collections being presented at Art Up Rouen and Lux Art Fair.

Kev’s artwork is hard to define because it spans the genres such as pop, urban and naive contemporary. Simultaneously, Kev often creates his pieces on objects such as pianos, grandfather clocks and even a police car!

We hope you liked our top picks of naive art. If you have any questions or would like more information on any of the artists please get in contact with us.