Meet the teacher from Hedge End going for national art prize

Olivia Arts, 22, is one of 50 artists who has had work nominated for the British Art Prize 2024 where she could win a slice of the £10,000 prize fund.

But the artist, who now teaches adults classical techniques at Charles H. Cecil Studios, Italy, hopes that her nomination can bring more eyes to Southampton and her Florence studio.

“In our studios out here, we work direct from life,” Olivia said.

“It’s important now more than ever to work directly from life because most artists are using photographs as a reference.

“It’s really good exposure to be nominated for this award.”

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Olivia grew up in Hedge End and studied art at Wildern School, where her teacher Richard Groom put her on the path of making her lifetime passion a career.

She said: “You’re not really aware of the employment opportunities you can have in art.

Olivia now teaches art in Florence, Italy, at Charles H. Cecil Studios. (Image: Olivia Arts) “But Mr Groom helped me so much and gave me the confidence to make it a viable option to pursue art.

“He always used to push us and inspire us to be better, which was really amazing.”

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Olivia moved to Florence after finishing her A-Levels five years ago, but her grandparents grew up in Bassett Green and her family remains in Southampton.

“I normally come back two or three times a year,” she said.

“This summer I decided to come back and landscape paint. I think people overlook the beauty in Southampton. We were painting the River Hamble and Southampton Common.”

Olivia travelled back to Southampton in the summer and painted the River Hamble direct from life. (Image: Olivia Arts) She is classically trained, which means she uses resources that stem back to the 1960s and old-school techniques, like a limited palette that only uses four colours to create skin tones.

Olivia said: “Everything we do, we observe from a distance. It’s pretty impressionistic and very passionate in the way we apply paint.

“It’s so important to keep this art style alive, otherwise we’re just corrupted by AI which is killing the soul in art.

"To work from natural life, it’s really important to me because things become static and you get a lot more soul.”

You can vote for Olivia in the British Art Prize 2024 on the competition's website.