Why Human Touch Matters in Art

About Me, Drawings/illustrations, graphic design, print design

Hello!

There is something I want to talk about which has been all over everyone’s screens lately, and this is Artificial Intelligence (AI) and its involvement in art, particularly graphic design. AI is difficult to get away from nowadays and is taking over a lot of aspects of our visual world. Here is a brief explanation of my thoughts on AI and if it has any effect on my work. Just fyi, this is my own writing and not AI… you’ll just have to believe me on that one!

To put it plain and simple, I feel very strongly about art in its purest and rawest form. A human touch with any artwork I feel is very important, as it gives that artwork personality and connection with the artist. Putting my computer to one side and getting out raw materials such as pencils, paints and paper, is something I feel really passionate about. It’s a headspace that I love being in, and I can’t get it from anywhere else. My work has its own style and each design is unique because of this and I don’t want to lose that aspect to my work.

I am not going to say that my work is completely AI free, AI is now a massive part of graphic design, and it’s also largely integrated into the softwares I use to refine and develop my work. What I do want to make clear is that my designs are not going to be created purely from AI. In my opinion, new technology such as AI is a tool to help assist with certain aspects of the creative design process, I won’t be using it to replace my brain and its artistic abilities or halt my creative freedom.

I am quite shy behind the camera but I do often document my work and take photos of my design process. I’ve created a short documentation of my work in the images below for a project that I completed for Bleubird recently, an outdoor lifestyle brand based in Northern Ireland. This project was started from pencil to paper with my own initial research and brainstorming.

Want to see more of my work? Head over to my Portfolio. < Click here.

Whale shark print design by paigecritchley.com

Ocean-Inspired Collaboration: Whale Shark Design

Drawings/illustrations, print design

I’m super happy to have designed this whale shark print for Ocean Armour, it’s always great to see my artwork come to life and this particular design is one of my favourites.  As a freelance Print & Graphic Designer, I was asked to create a custom design for a buff, inspired by the majestic whale shark. This project was a lot of fun and a personal favourite, especially since the ocean is a huge influence in so much of my work.

Want to see more of what I do? Head over to my website (link in bio). 

Ocean Armour has a great range of products where sustainability is at the core of everything they do: oceanarmour.com.au.

Here are some images of the drawings and final product:

Have a great day and thank you for visiting!

Harpy Eagle painting

Paintings

Happy New Year everyone! I wanted to tell you about a new project I finished recently, a painting of a Harpy Eagle. This was a project I did as a partner to a previous painting of a Philippine Eagle, you can see that one by clicking here. The canvas I worked on for this painting was slightly smaller than other ones I have done, and I usually like working to a large scale. However, painting birds has become a new hobby of mine, I like that they have such powerful expressions and you can be quite dramatic with mark making when you are painting their feathers. For the background, I was originally going to paint a jungle theme, or thick leaves, but after attempting this, I realised I wanted the bird to be the focal point and creating a complicated background took this away.

See some photos below of my progress below:

Have you got something in mind that you would like me to paint? Get in touch! I’d be more than happy to help. I have created several commissions before, mostly inspired by nature, animals and the ocean. See more of my paintings by clicking here. I have also created bespoke wall murals!

Philippine eagle

Paintings

I painted a Philippine eagle recently and thoroughly enjoyed it! I’m clearly getting into this bird painting business if you have a look at my other recent posts…

For this painting I found a photo of a Philippine eagle online and found it really mesmerising. I immediately wanted to paint it. My partners favourite animal is also this particular bird so it made a great birthday gift! I have to say, I’m still not completely satisfied with the detail in the head feathers. I may go back to it at some point.

I hope you like it.

Robin #2

Paintings

I did another commission recently of a robin. This one is slightly different as a hand replaces the ukulele! I did struggle with this painting as hands a very tricky to paint! I enjoyed it though and I loved working with some brighter colours in this one. Also the background is somewhere I have been walking often and watched some lovely sunsets. It was a pleasure to paint. I hope you like it!

29.7cm x 42cm Acrylic on canvas.

Musical Robin

Paintings

A new painting! This is a commission I was asked to do recently. It pictures a robin sitting on the top of a Ukulele overlooking the sea. A random but wonderful request! It’s the first time I’ve painted a bird and it’s made me want to paint more of them. Birds are magnificent creatures of this planet and I’ve noticed myself becoming more and more fascinated by them. Watch this space as I have been asked to paint something very similar to this by the same customer, and I’ll be starting it soon!

I hope you all like it. Acrylic on canvas ~ 29.7cm x 42cm.

If you’d like to see more of my paintings, you can view them using the painting tab at the top of my website. Thanks, and enjoy the rest of your day!

On display in Common Loaf Bakery, Tofino.

Paintings

I’m very happy to announce that 2 of my paintings are up on display in Common Loaf Bakery a friendly bakery and Cafe in Tofino, B.C. Canada. I lived in Tofino earlier this year, it’s such a beautiful place and I gained a lot of inspiration from it, particularly because I spent a lot of time by the ocean, including surfing and exploring the coastline. My fondest memory before I left Vancouver Island was the hike I partook in along the west coast (The West Coast Trail) which also provided me with endless influences.

I have included some images below showing the paintings on display. I have a new ‘paintings’ tab at the top of my website where you can view all the paintings I have sold or created for commission. I am open to commissions at the moment so please get in touch if you have something in mind. I am experienced in creating nature inspired paintings, particularly the ocean and landscapes.

I hope you are having a great week so far!

Paige x

My friend and her dog

Paintings

Here is a painting I did recently of my friend Sara and her dog, Teddy. He sadly passed away earlier this year and he was her best friend. The painting shows them both at Kamloops lake in B.C. Canada. I lived near the lake for a while when I was travelling and we would go for walks there together. I met Sara at a ski resort and we became very close friends during my travels in Canada. I hope you like it! It’s an acrylic painting 21 x 29.7 cm. Check out my other paintings on my ‘paintings’ tab at the top of my website. I am currently taking commissions, so please get in touch if you would like me to paint you something. I hope you are having a great week so far!

First try at painting a dog

Paintings

I tried painting a dog for the first time recently. It was for my friend’s birthday – he works on a small fishing camp in BC, Canada. His dog is called Willy, a huge and very playful pup. I am actually currently working at the fishing camp too (woofing). It’s a lot of fun and very peaceful. I go running down the service forest road in the mornings and swim across one of the lakes in the afternoons. Since I have a lot of spare time on my hands I thought I would get back into my painting. I hope you like it! (Acrylic on canvas.)

See below some pictures of the painting.