New Zealand Paintings by Sarah- Jane Smith

I paint from the heart using bold colours of  New Zealand. All my  work is fresh, unique and ready to hang.  You will be amazed at the variety of work that I do. You will have a lot to choose from.

How it all started :  I was drawing at a very young age anything I could get my hands on from fashion sketches and clothes designs to local scenes around my home.  Needless to say I took art at school and had a very inventive art tutor who often got us to paint from imagination.  “Close your eyes and try to picture an old country home with gumboots on the front porch”, he’d order us.  Often my paintings were true to life but with intense colour which usually came from the ink and acrylic we used in class.

It wasn’t until later after school that I took up painting again mainly due to a friend who showed me watercolour techniques and helped me to develop composition and colour.  These techniques formed the beginning of my adult years painting art of various forms from realism to impressionism.  My rural upbringing influenced how I painted the areas around my home.  Often I used watercolour to capture the scenes of my younger years.

I continued to paint in Hong Kong mainly using watercolours which were well suited to the terrain of Hong Kong landscapes.  The little village on Lantau Island afforded me the time and wealth of perspectives to paint to my hearts content.  It was here that I decided to do a foundation course in Art at Hong Kong University.  My tutor told me that he admired my watercolour technique and style of painting.  I have a book that I co -authored and illustrated with my aunt.  The book documents some of the places my aunt and I worked and lived in.

On returning to New Zealand I started to paint using strong acrylic colour as I had started out painting in school.  Rather than using ink and primary acrylic on paper I work with oil and acrylic on canvas.  I travelled around New Zealand and took many reference photos  of  landscapes in the area.  I enjoyed the beautiful scenery and solace of the open mountainous landscapes. 
Today my work from home in Auckland and continue to work in all three mediums of acrylic, oil and watercolour.

I hope you enjoy looking around my website!  Sarah – Jane Smith 

Some comments by people who have purchased my paintings:

- Absolutely stunning picture.  Goes perfectly in our lounge.  Thanks for the great trade!

- A beautiful painting.  Fast delivery and excellent packaging.  Looking forward to seeing more of your work.