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. MARY ELIZABETH JOLLEY
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"July, South of France" 2003
oil on canvas
75x50cm
"Roof Tops, South of France" 2003
oil on canvas
58x73cm
"Montcuq Skies" 2003
oil on canvas
60x45cm
"A Day by the Sea" 2006
oil on canvas
75x50cm
"High Summer in the Village" 2006
oil on canvas
73x58cm
"Moon over the Terrace" 2006
oil on canvas
60x45cm(1-3=in private collections, 4-6=artist's collection)
Mary Jolley was born in Monmouthshire. She studied Social Sciences at the University of Wales in Cardiff and pursued a career in this field whilst continuing to paint and exhibit at different galleries in the principality. She has a studio in Cardiff and in Montcuq in the Lot Valley of South West France.
Mary Jolley's work embraces many subjects from rural village life in France to lovers huddling on a Cardiff street corner. Her distinctive use of shape and colour and the overall texture and depth of her work unify all her paintings. Her latest collection (shown at the Albany Gallery in Cardiff, February to March 2004) captures the unique colours and atmophere of the South West region of France. Her bold and distinctive style is much in evidence with the rich colour effects of her more local work (quoted from an exhibition flysheet)
Early work focused on figurative studies of the homeless in Cardiff and studies of Welsh landscapes. However, frequent visits to the South of France provided the inspiration that gave impetus to her main body of work. She was so moved by the colours and subject matter of the south that she decided to settle there and now divides her time between her studio in Cardiff and her home in Montcuq. As she says of her own work: "For me the paintings have a strong emotional content and capture the sensations of the moment in a way a photograph or a representational painting never could. I am particularly moved by the sky's light and colour, which in the South of France ranges from turquoise to the most intense blue. In Montcuq the houses are built from local limestone and the variation of blues and greys continue to be an enduring image in many of my pictures."
All of Jolley's work, whether it's a study of France or a Fishguard seascape, is unified by her distinctive use of shape and colour. The overall texture and depth of her work creates a unique sense of body and presence. This bold and very individual style has been much admired and her works are to be found in private collections around the world.
Exhibitions in the UK: 1974 Albany Gallery Cardiff (mixed); 2004 Albany Gallery Cardiff (mixed); 2005 Michael Wood Fine Arts, Barbican Plymouth.
International Links:
exhibitions abroad: 2004 solo exhibition in Frankfurt/Germany; 2005 in Germany & France
public collections abroad: .............................................
