Diana Armstrong

Art For Sale

New works arriving soon to be exhibited at the Affordable Art Fair in October

Click on thumbnails for further details

Diana Armstrong has developed a unique approach to her art, which she styles as "Magical Realism", drawing much of her inspiration from literary sources. Her methods and technique are based on skilled draughtsmanship and handling of oil paint and the underlying narrative in her work follows in the tradition of the earlier Masters.

We first discovered Diana's work when we exhibited a series of animal themed works in 2014. Since then her career has blossomed, winning an award for her painting at the "New Lights" Art Competition. Then, from relative obscurity having never exhibited her work publicly, her paintings have appeared in exhibitions at the Mall Galleries and Hay Hill Galleries in London as well as 2 London art fairs, with her works selling to collectors in the UK and overseas.

Diana's 2014 series of animal subjects were inspired by literature and mythology and this latest series of paintings at Helmsley Galleries was similarly inspired by her reading of Lewis Carroll's 'Alice's Adventures in Wonderland', a book she decided to revisit on learning that 2015 was the 150th anniversary of its publication.

The paintings in this new "Alice" series are not literal illustrations of the story but play on many of the ideas and symbols in the book, featuring pocket watches, chess pieces, playing cards and introducing cup cakes decorated to represent red and white queens, with her subject "Drink Me!" being perhaps one of the most iconic links to the book.

Diana has approached the subject in a theatrical sense, regarding the components almost as characters in a drama, so while they are "still life" objects she regards them all as players in her narrative, using pattern, reflection and perspective to create drama and depth within the scene and employing effects of chiaroscuro to create lighting as if they are players on a stage.

Although the paintings are filled with references to the symbolism of objects and play on many of the ideas in the book, Diana is keen to stress that her underlying ideas add to the interest but are not an explanation of how to view the work, so these works can simply be admired as beautifully crafted paintings.

That said, she is happy to share her ideas if people wish to gain a better insight and unlock some of the symbols and coded messages within the paintings.