Doranne Caruana AldenEcoline Watercolourist - Malta

My Design philosophy is so very simple - keep it positive, keep it bright, keep it simple, keep it light.I love colour, and light and so my artwork reflects this philosophy. Moreover through the years I have come to realise that I also need to be in a good mood to paint. Hence, my pictures are, for the

most part, positive. Therefore having produced so many positive works through out the years I forgive anyone for thinking that I am always in a good mood. On the other hand, although this maybe the case, I also love to work hard and fast to produce as much work as I can in a limited amount of time. My working in this manner probably came about because my working life dictated it so from

the beginning... My first job experience was that of a young graphic designer in the 80's - working under pressure with several busy advertising agencies; In fact this is where I discovered Ecoline Liquid Watercolour. My relationship with this medium turned out to be best relationship an artist could ever wish to have with his or her favourite medium... We 'clicked' at first stroke... and thus

began my journey with this wonderful, fast and fun medium - Jewelled Colours in little bright glass bottles promising to be as rewarding as when I first dipped my brush into them... perfect for preparing mock-ups and visuals as no computer-added-design was available then. All had to be worked by hand from visual to final artwork, and all had to be done at high speed - in a blink of an eye.

Everything as always had to be ready 'yesterday'... But it certainly paid off for me. This medium is also more popularly used for airbrush work, quick sketches and for comic illustrations.

My Inspiration comes from everything around me - the mundane, for lack of a better word. Still I do find it is actually the best source of inspiration - it is all around us and always deserves a second glance. I also believe that ultimately it is really the way in which an artist portrays a picture that makes a painting worth looking at. A few years ago an art critic told me that to be a true collectable artist you had to discover what makes a perfect picture. After much grief and frustration and agonising over this, I came to the conclusion that this could actually be quite a subjective thing. I myself

have found that the expressionists, impressionists and fauvist artists inspire me most and their pictures are mostly of mundane situations too. Of course there is no denying the fact that they were masters skilled in their medium, and with a wonderful choice of composition, lighting etc., and could create the perfect work because of this. Still I do find that not all of their works draw me in – so

this is where it becomes subjective for me. My thoughts are that a picture should really just draw you in on its' own merit, and for your particular reasons and taste. Sometimes the artist will try to convey the message directly or indirectly

through the painting, but if the artwork is well executed, and composed then the success of the painting is more or less guaranteed. Although nowadays the trend is that anyone can be an artist, but I still believe that a basic knowledge, a deep passion for art and painting are a vital and important part of becoming an artist - and eventually if the artist is gifted enough, could develop into a fully

fledged master. - Of course this is where 'nurture vs. nature' comes into play – so I am secretly thankful that I have a gifted artist as my father.Finally aside from this, my bottom line is that I paint for the joy of it and live in hope that my work gives pleasure to whoever views it. I am also satisfied to know that whoever owns my work, share in my philosophy and enjoy living with my paintings everyday. My work can be found in private collections all over the world, - including banks, such as Volksbank in Germany and Valletta Fund

Management in Malta and also in respected establishments such as the Strickland Foundation in Malta and MIS in Bavaria, Germany.So if you would like to own or gift my paintings or limited edition prints, to someone special, please do feel free to email directly - I look forward to sharing my artistic philosophy with you - in your

homes or offices too. I have been working as an artist/graphic designer since 1982 and exhibiting my work over the last 20 years.You can read more about me on www.artbreak.com/dora or http://saatchionline.com/darlingdor

Email:dorart@hotmail.com