Art in the Park - HeARTfelt by Maggie Le Conte

A new art exhibition by Maggie Le Conte entitled 'HeARTfelt' at the Art at the Park Gallery, The Folk and Costume Museum, Saumarez Park will run from Tuesday the 2nd of September until Friday 26th of September. It will be open daily from 10am until 5pm (except on the final day when the exhibition will close at 2pm), the Gallery has free entry and is accessible friendly.

Maggie's bright and detailed paintings delight the viewer, whether it is the bold, stark design of a snowy night at Stonehenge, an intense vibrant scene of the Albecq rocks or a flower packed view of the Victorian walled garden with the plants so intricate that you could almost identify each type! 30 degrees at Torteval is so intense that you can almost feel the heat radiating from the picture. Come and marvel at the detail. 

Bio & Inspirations:

“Maggie Le Conte was born in Natal, South Africa and came to Guernsey as a teenager. From a very early age she developed a great love of painting and drawing . Self-taught, she was mentored and encouraged by her artist parents. In her final year at school Margaret Waller FIAL taught her and over the years she has been tutored by a few talented professional artists whilst on painting trips and workshops. SciFi artist, Chris Foss, has also been a mentor to her.

This is her second solo Exhibition at the National Trust’s Gallery, Art at the Park. Her work has also been shown at the Coach House Gallery, Sula Gallery and Sausmarez Manor locally. Several paintings are in homes globally too.

Within the word “heart” is the word “art” hence this Exhibition being named “HeARTfelt”  as her artwork is inspired by her feelings and love of the world around and within her.

Her love of nature, history, dance, music, sci-fi and fantasy is reflected in her “eclectic” art. Having Synesthesia, she likes to listen to music whilst creating art. 

Asked why she has such diverse subject styles she explains that she follows her intuition. For example, some subjects merit delicate, detailed brushwork & therefore watercolours are more suited whereas, using acrylics on a big canvas may call for much bolder brush marks & colours. It all depends on what inspires her and catches her eye. Her appreciation of the natural world heavily influences her work when painting “en plein air” and will complete them later at her home. She especially finds joy in her large garden and “jungle” greenhouse which have inspired a lot of her paintings.

Sadly, her husband died last year after living with Fronto Temporal Dementia for a few years and it was by immersing herself in creating art that has helped her cope with the grief and navigating life without him.

As a child she loved to read fairy tales, myths and legends. As a teenager and now as an adult she enjoys reading the fantasy genre as they appeal to her imaginative nature. This explains why the odd dragon appears in her creations, especially in her Christmas cards. Each year she designs a new seasonal card depicting mischievous dragons in pen and ink.

She enjoys attending Life Drawing sessions, which she feels is both helpful to improve drawing skills and to focus. This then, is an aid to creating some of the dancing figure paintings she imagines.

Maggie is passionate about art and always encourages everyone to have a go to express themselves, explore and have fun with it. Art can lift the spirit of the both the creator and the viewer. She hopes that her art will touch your heart.“