Joe and Catherine McWilliams are hosts at the Christmas Group Exhibition again this year. A regular feature of the Belfast arts calendar, the show this year is curated with small size and affordability in mind. Making this show the perfect opportunity for shopping for an artistic loved one.

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The invitation's front is a mixed media work from Catherine titled Gathering Birds series No. 1

On Thursday 22nd of November, the Arts Club opens the Works on Paper show.

This proved very popular last year, as it showcased beautiful art at prices that are more in tune with the times we aere living in. Marie-Louise has submitted on piece, along with these as a taster...

Jacke Stanley

Campbell Bruce HRHA

Joe McWilliams RUA

Catherine McWilliams RUA

Raphael Hynes

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It's that time of year again.

Marie-Louise will open the doors of her studio to all who would like to drop in and visit. There will be mincers and a glass of something cockles-of-your-heart-warming. Tell your friends and bring someone along with you. There will be demonstrations on printmaking, cards and other things to put in Christmas Stockings and of course, if you were inclined, the opportunity to sort out the Christmas shopping for the art-lovers in your family! Drop in during the first two weekends in December after 11am.

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The Summer was a hectic, full one, with so many thing happening at once. And not all of them related to the makiing of Art.

However, The shows all went off OK, but with little sign of a red dot - until this afternoon. I had made contact with the RUA to collect my unsold work from them earlier than the alloted time, as I would not be able to go North on the day they assigned. I was told that my request would be accommodated, and I felt reasonably happy.

Today I received a phone call from RUA to let me know that my piece was SOLD!!! I feel unreasonably happy now.

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Well,

After a long spell with not much happening, such an awful lot has just occured:

Selected for inclusion in the Royal Ulster Academy (RUA)'s annual show; opening on 18th October.

Selected for the United Arts Club's show in the offices of the European Commission; opening 17th September.

Selected for the Impression show held in Galway Arts Centre; opening 14th September.

It's just as well Marie-Louise is on holiday! She'll come back home bronzed and basking in the radiant glow of so much approval.

In addition to these selctions, she will be exhibiting with WCSI in Dun Laoghaire again this year as every member is allowed to.

Marie-Louise is attending a short weekend course on using alternatives to Nitric Acid for the etch. There have been, in the past, forays into this area, and not with high rates of success with respect to the quality of the line. Preliminary results are positive, and here's what she said to good friend and fellow artist Raphael Hynes:

"Hi Raphael,
I had a great weekend on print course, and I was pleased with results.
It will need a lot of practice to get up to speed and get the results I want from it. The aluminium tends to foul bite very easily if it hasn't been degreased properly, and if you are very fussy about pure white areas this could drive you bonkers. But you can etch the plate completely and treat it like a mezzotint, which you might like. I couldn't believe the speed the plate etched to a black.....5 MINIUTES!!!! This was a fresh bath on the first day, and the second day it took almost 15 minutes. It's very like steel, as it has a plate tone, and the results reminded me of my first experiences using steel... I thought it was quite crude, but with practice it got more refined. It would certainly be worth looking into as a safer substitute for nitric."

The course is given by another friend and long-standing member of the Blanc Church Print Studio, Vincent Sheridan.

Images of plate tones, lines and soft grounds to follow...

Go to maps.google.com and zoom out to see the whole world.

Enter the words "contemporary printmaker" in the search text field.

Hey Presto! Marie-Louise is the top contemporary printmaker (say it like Jeremy Clarkson)... in the world!

Marie-Louise has been invited to show a selection of her prints and drawings in La Pergola. Tommaso and Federico, the proprietors, were impressed by Marie-Louise's work when they saw it recently in a joint show. Their mother, Velia, was particularly taken by the etchings and drypoints of winter scenes; they are, she said, a far cry from the run-of-the-mill chocolate box scenes of Tuscany that sell by the cart-load. The show can be enjoyed, as you eat the most fantastic, typically Tuscan food, for the next few months into winter. La Pergola can take your booking on +390577790717

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The WCSI holds its Annual Exhibition in Dun Laoghaire on 10th October this year. Marie-Louise has three pieces that have been specially prepared for the show and looks forward to the show with gathering excitement.

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Google and Google Maps have  combined all their location photography to cover all of Ireland – including Marie-Louise's studio!

Follow this link to see the location information, and you can leave a comment/review there too...

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