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My Paintings


 My Paintings

I have always been interested in art. I can't draw to save myself but I can paint (still haven't figured out how that works but it does!)

I was going through a hard time and needed some extra money. With having 3 young kids to look after my options were limited. A friend of mine suggested I take up painting and try selling them on Trade Me. I could paint out my frustrations and make some money on the side. And that is exactly what I did!

I tried an abstract painting first. By doing that it didn't have to necessary look like anything in particular. And to my surprise... it sold! I was shocked. But excited and before long I was pumping out as many paintings as I could fit on my tables, benches and any other surface I could find. My house became a gallery with walls full of paintings and in my first year I sold over 400 paintings. Some for cheap as chips and others that blew me away with the price they sold for. All paintings were sold at $1 reserve. 

At that time there were only about 1200 paintings to be sold on Trade Me. Now there's 6403!!! (as @ 30.09.20) Competition became tough with people buying paintings from china for next to nothing and then selling them on trade me for $250+. I had to come up with something that was unique to me and my art name... PoPpY.

I was inspired by Fred and Myrtle Flutey's Paua House in Bluff, New Zealand - later moved to Canterbury Museum after their passing. I had always been fascinated by the colors of a paua shell. After a bit of experimentation I came up with this technique to create a paua (abalone) shell effect. With its iridescent colors that change color in different light I knew I had created something unique. And so PoPpY's Paua Paintings was formed and I haven't looked back.

I got tired of painting canvasses. Then one day one of the kids friends brought his electric guitar around and asked me to paint it for him. Of course I did and it looked awesome. I have one paua painting that was sold in my very first gallery to a fella in New York that was over here on holiday. That was a very proud moment indeed. The paua paintings are in high demand but I'm having a well deserved break from them at the moment and trying my hand at other creative endeavors. 


Photo: A paua shell in its raw state.











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