Artist Spotlight: Kitty Bellamy

Join us as we shine the spotlight on the wonderful Kitty Bellamy; a professional portrait artist based in the UK. 

“I have been working as an artist since 2007, but my love of painting and drawing goes all the way back to my earliest years.  My first love was drawing people, who apparently even as stick figures had jointed fingers and toes. I was fortunate to grow up in a house with a lot of paintings and a number of portraits of family members, some of which were drawn and painted long ago by other family members. As a child, I would sit for hours staring up at the faces of grandparents, great-grandparents, distant aunts and uncles, wondering what they were like and making up stories about them.  I still adore being in a corridor full of portraits, and find myself doing the same thing now, wondering who they were, what they were thinking in that moment and making up some kind of narrative for them.”

What subjects do you like to paint, and why? 

“Over the years, I explored many subjects, but ironically, the more I learnt about painting, the more overwhelming the prospect of painting people felt. I shied away from them for a very long time, occasionally dipping a toe back in, never painting faces – far too scary, I thought! Then finally, (during lockdown – you know, that period where so many of us re-evaluated our lives and what we truly wanted) and having exhausted everything else I had once found interesting, I sat in my bedroom which at that time was also my studio and asked myself what I really wanted to paint, because although I was happy enough, I didn’t feel challenged and what I really wanted was to feel challenged. My eyes fell to my book shelves, full of books about artists I admired, almost like a half prayer, half question to those who had already been here, I asked, “How did you do it? How did you know?” And reading through their names, I realised that over 90% were figurative or portrait artists. I looked around my room at the small collection of artworks by other artists that filled the gaps on the walls and surfaces, and with realisation slowly dawning, I saw portraits, busts, figures… It was one of those moments where you metaphorically slap your own forehead and ask yourself how on earth you could have missed it. And I said, “Do you think…now bear with me here and try not to panic… do you think that perhaps you might actually want to paint people?”

It was at about this point in time that I was undergoing a self-inflicted painting challenge.  100 paintings, in 100 consecutive days, all painted live on Facebook – all commissions from my lovely supportive Facebook community.  The subject was entirely up to the customer. Some of my first portraits came from those commissions – all clients knowing that it wasn’t a subject I had much experience with, but all gave me their unerring belief that I could do it. I can’t thank them enough. I invested the money from these commissions into learning more. I had gaps in my knowledge and knew I needed to learn from someone with more experience. I went on 2 short courses with Peter Keegan online and his teaching gave me the confidence I needed and helped me to understand how to progress.  It was through his recommendation that I came to use Rosemary & Co brushes and after I bought my first bundle, I vowed I wouldn’t go to another brand again. I was hooked! I fell in love with how well they were made, how well they lasted and performed, though I admit they do get more than a little abuse in my studio.”

What are your go-to Rosemary brushes? 

“My current go-to brushes are the Eclipse Filbert range.  I find the synthetic mongoose bristles stand up well to the frenetic early stages of my painting with just enough resistance, which is great when I’m laying down fast sections of paint as I block in.  But they are soft enough to feather and blend as I slow down and start to add thin layers of colour, creating the delicate illusion of skin.  The rounded shape and longer bristles, when used flat on the surface of the canvas, are perfect for going on and coming off with soft marks, rather than leaving hard edges or lines, but you have the advantage of using the narrow edge for thinner, more controlled lines and detail. I tend to work in thin layers, however, they also load well if you want a little more impasto. Sometimes I switch to a pointed round towards the end, for very small marks like the pinprick highlights of light in the eyes. I love that there’s a choice of long or short handled too, my preference is always for long so that I can keep some distance between me and the painting – I can get a little too involved in detail if I stay too close, and I find the longer handles remind me to move back. I always paint in oils and have found that paired with Michael Harding paint, they are an absolute dream, and that if you read the brilliantly useful brush care advice that comes in the box with the brushes, they last a lot longer!

Resolve 

Kitty Bellamy

My brushes also appear in my self-portrait, titled “Resolve”, which was later featured on Portrait Artist of the Year (s11 e7). The portrait was painted from a photo of me working in my studio.  I always have a few brushes in use at any given moment and my hair tied back, which becomes a helpful 3rd hand for holding them. Resolve was painted over the Christmas holiday period (December 2023- January 24), and was a moment of self-reflection at the end of my first full year of painting primarily portraits. It was over this holiday that I was adamant that pursuing a career in figurative and portrait painting was the route I wanted to go on. It is a reminder of my resolve, my promise to myself, that I will continue to strive to improve, learn, grow and persevere with this subject. Because ultimately, the challenges it provides me with, and the frustrations I have to overcome with each painting, are immensely rewarding – even if… on occasion, I have the absolute desire to obliterate it with turps and question my sanity. I feel I’m probably not alone in this sentiment, being an artist is a blessing and a curse in one creative and beautiful bundle.

The Christmas self-portrait seems to be becoming an annual habit, my latest (titled “Old Fashioned?”) was a composition designed to push me. Complex fabric was something that I’d previously avoided, a foreshortened hand, a glass, another hand… and always some interesting jewellery. It’s a celebration of things I love (including the cocktail), but also a look back at a question I had asked myself many times over the course of the year: Is my style too traditional? And is that something I should be worried about? By the end of the painting, my conclusion was and still is this: Do what you love. Don’t worry about whether it fits the market, or looks like other artists’ work, or doesn’t, or if you feel it’s already been done, or even if it looks like nothing that’s come before. It’s yours and is as unique as you are. I liken brushstrokes to handwriting; you can imitate someone, but ultimately your hand will show through it, so just embrace it. Follow your passion, and there you will find your voice, your style, your hand. Stop worrying about what the rest of the world thinks and just paint.

Old Fashioned? 

Kitty Bellamy

This year, I’m taking a step back from commission work whilst I work on a collection of paintings of fascinating people from around the world, and look for gallery representation.”

Where can people follow your journey? 

“You can follow my progress on most major social media platforms by searching for @kittybellamyart or view finished works on my website www.kittybellamy.co.uk.”