Artist Michael Ashcroft has been one of the hot artists to watch in 2011/2012 and will continue to be so in the next few years.  2011 saw him accepted into the Manchester Academy of Fine Art and also the year in which he had paintings accepted by the Royal Institute of Oil Painters for exhibition at the Mall Galleries in London.

With more exciting projects planned for 2012, we are delighted to be hosting an amazing solo exhibition of his landscape and urban original paintings.

Diagnosed with a brain tumor at the tender age of only 28, Michael Ashcroft has taken huge positives from his illness which has helped inspire his love, passion and immense talent for art.  Speaking to Lancashire Life magazine in 2010, Michael Ashcroft admitted ‘Painting is my passion, without that and, of course, my wife Debbie’s support I don’t think I’d have got through the last ten years’.

‘When I left school I was thinking about going to art college but my dad said I had to get a trade and so I got an engineering apprenticeship’, he says. ‘I did it for years and hated it with a passion.’

Interestingly, during his 12 months off work having been operated on to remove the tumor, Michael rediscovered his love of art.  ‘The poignant moment for me was in hospital after the operation. I remember looking at my reflection in the window. One side of my face was lit by the light the other was in the dark. It was as if the light side was the healthy side, the dark side the ill side and I remember thinking that was just how I’d been feeling.’

The light and dark revelation helps to define Michael Ashcroft’s work even today.  ‘It’s not so much about the subject,’ he explains, ‘but the shapes, the colour and the light’.  ’Realist in an impressionistic’ way is how he describes his original paintings, the interaction between dark and light being instantly recognisable in his work.

The exhibition will allow Michael Ashcroft collectors to view one of the largest exhibitions of his original paintings ever shown, and provide a wonderful opportunity to meet Michael Ashcroft and purchase the work of a true Lancashire painter, a reluctant and genuine art star of the future.

Please do come along and support one of the most talented and kind hearted artists you will ever meet.  The exhibition opens on the evening of the 21st June from 7-9pm.

View some of Michael Ashcroft’s original paintings here.

If you are not already on the mailing list and would like to receive an invitation, please contact us at the gallery.

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The evening gave Todd White fans the chance to see Todd’s latest work along with the amazing Princess Diana painting being sold on behalf of the Diana Award charity.

We are delighted to announce that the Todd White original painting of the Princess has now sold as part of the exhibition to the great delight of the lucky collector and the charity.

Prior to the exhibition, Todd White was doing the press rounds, appearing on BBC Radio Lancashire talking about the Hepplestone Todd White exhibition.  Todd kindly described Hepplestone Fine Art as ‘a fantastic gallery’ and ‘one of his favourites’.  Check out the John Gillmore show on BBC Radio Lancashire from 26/4/2012 to hear the full interview which starts around one hour into the show.

The American Trilogy limited edition collection are available as both gloss (£1800 each) and diamond dust (£2250 each) editions which are each from editions of 150 and are available as individual images or sets of three.

Three American icons: the stars and stripes, Elvis Presley and Coca Cola are combined to create American Trilogy, a classic pop art image by Sir Peter Blake. American Trilogy celebrates the roots of Pop Art; featuring imagery that represents the power of mass consumer products and popular culture, and reflecting the fact  America lead mass culture revolution in the 1950s. There are three versions of this silkscreen print; all feature embossing and hand-applied gold or silver leaf, and two are finished with diamond dust. This repetition of imagery with a slight variation on colour or surface texture is reminiscent of the work of Andy Warhol, and serves the double purpose of reflecting the endless ‘sameness’ of mass production and  rooting American Trilogy deep in the Pop Art tradition. The choice of monochrome background colours lends greater visual impact to the trilogy motifs, as well as marking a more subtle and sophisticated approach by Blake in his latest work.

Faith, Hope and Charity is a nostalgic triptych of segments made up from collaged elements of Victorian postcards. This delicate and feminine work illustrates the three Christian virtues mentioned in Paul’s first epistle to the Corinthians. This work is about sentiment and the power of words.  It continues the exploration of this power, these eternal themes, that Blake examined in his recent ‘I Love You’ and ‘Hope’ prints. Using floral motifs on postcards was very popular in the Victorian era; here Blake has re-arranged these ornamentations to suit his own aesthetic vision. Cherub heads and child-figures playing musical instruments feature in the ‘Faith’ section; echoing the themes of childhood innocence and joy that recur throughout Blake’s work. The rectangular panel at the peak of the cross is taken from a work by Sir Joshua Reynolds ‘A Cherub Head in Different Views’ 1787.  Each panel includes the design of a hand holding a messages ‘Remember Me, Forget Me Not and A Tribute of Love’ that would have been the centre-piece of the original postcards from which they are extracted.

Faith Hope and Charity is from an edition of 125 and is available at £1500 unframed.

Creating a pair with Matchboxes (2011), Sir Peter Blake’s new work features more of his collection of rare, antique, novelty and international matchboxes. This time the matchboxes are presented on a warm red background, complementing the blue used in the earlier work. Turning this collection into a piece of fine art harks back to the key tenets of Pop art: that everyday objects should be viewed with a fresh perspective; should be viewed as valuable and beautiful. Here Peter Blake creates a composition of surprising visual diversity and that evokes a by-gone era.

Matchboxes II is available from an edition of 100 at £1500 unframed.

Breeze and Echo are special UK only editions of which there are only 100 and 150 respectively.  These two Tim Cotterill bronze frog sculptures are therefore sure to be snapped up by Frogman collectors very quickly.

Echo is a particularly versatile little frog as not only is it designed to sit flat on a table, but it will also wall mount if necessary.  A wonderful addition to any Frogman bronze collection.  Full sizes and prices for both frogs can be found by clicking here on the Frogman bronze section. 

In addition to the two new frogs, we have also managed to source an older and scarce frog, the wonderful Zorro.  We only have one Frogman Zorro available so if this one takes your fancy, please let us know at the gallery as soon as possible.

The original oil painting by leading American Artist Todd White shows the Princess in her fun-loving mode as captured on camera by fashion photographer Mario Testino and was gifted to the Diana Award who have been recognising, honouring, and harnessing the potential of inspirational, socially motivated young people since 1999.

The painting will form part of the Todd White exhibition on the 26th April and available to purchase in order to benefit the charity.  If you are interested in purchasing this landmark painting by an international art phenomenon, please contact the gallery on 01257 451121 or sales@hepplestonefineart.com

Check out the coverage of the sale on the BBC website http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-lancashire-17848696 or listen to Todd White on BBC Radio Lancashire on the John Gillmore show 26/04/2012.

We are delighted therefore to have secured two brand new paintings by Barry Hilton this week which once again demonstrate the artist’s versatility and desire to keep moving his subject matter forward.

Both paintings boast Barry Hilton’s trademark dramatic skies but experiment with his use of colour and subject culminating in striking contemporary paintings – not bad for an artist who turned 71 last week.  Happy Birthday Barry!

View the full available listing of Barry Hilton original paintings here.

The lost wax process is not a new technique and has been used for thousand of years, dating back to the Egyptians who used it produce there jewellery.

The technique involves creating a wax duplicate of the original sculpture which is then encased in a ceramic shell.  The shell is then baked, melting the wax and creating a void in the image of the sculpture.  The void is then filled with liquid bronze and then the ceramic shell is removed exposing the bronze sculpture.

This technique is used by sculpture Tim Cotterill, aka Frogman, who demonstrates the process very well in the following video.

The two bronze frogs are mounted on a stainless steel base allowing the viewer to either wall mount the sculpture or display it laid flat on a table.

View full details of Gemini by Frogman Tim Cotterill here

From an edition of 2000 worldwide, Joy Ride depicts a mother frog carried her baby on her back.  Anyway, why listen to us telling you about the sculpture when Tim Cotterill can tell you about it himself……

Although originally from Leicestershire in England, Frogman Tim Cotterill is now based in California where he produces his wonderful bronze frog sculptures.  Frogman has become a favourite with many US celebrities including Whoopie Goldberg, David Hasselhoff and Michelle Pfeiffer to name but a few.

To view size and price details for Joy Ride or to order online click here

The original idea for the image came from lead singer Ricky Wilson who has known Sarah Graham for a number of years.

The subject matter chosen suited Sarah Graham’s photo realist style perfectly as she is already widely known for her amazing paintings of everyday objects, represented in a playful and contemporary fashion.

Sarah Graham’s limited edition collection can be viewed here.