Meet the Maker - Painting with Carolyn Gavin

In the latest of our Meet the Maker series, we introduce you to artist Carolyn Gavin, whose joyful paintings are filled with colour, nature and a wonderful sense of play. I first discovered Carolyn’s work when I joined her on a painting retreat in Crete, and what followed was a life-changing week of painting, creativity and inspiration.

With our shared love of colour, playfulness, nature, style and clothes, Carolyn and I chat about her work, her creative process and the inspiration behind her paintings. And as we say a soft farewell to summer, I reflect on the painting retreat in Crete that re-kindled my love of painting.

If there was a paint genre for joy, Carolyn would be its master painter. Happiness seems to run through everything she does. As she dips her brushes and dabs colour effortlessly onto paper, every mark raises a smile — an unexpected flower, a magical landscape, a spot of neon that suddenly glows.

I couldn’t help but be captivated by Carolyn’s work when, on a gloomy January morning, I saw the words “Come paint with me in Crete” and stopped in my tracks during my morning scroll. It had been a tough year personally, and I needed some positivity to look forward to. Within half an hour, quite nervously — having not painted since school — I had booked myself a week in Crete.

What transpired was a heavenly week of painting, creativity and inspiration from nature. We picked flowers from the fields, observed the landscape, soaked up the sun and painted all the elements around us with freedom and fun. Carolyn taught us to be playful, loose and free, sharing her own approach to painting while encouraging each of us to find our own style.

Welcome to the joy of paint through the eyes of Carolyn Gavin, and to the creative values we’ve since discovered we share — an uplifting approach to design, colour, nature and style.

Carolyn, can you tell us a little about your background and what led you to painting? 

"I grew up in South Africa and as a child had a wonderful art teacher who encouraged me to draw and paint. Nature, colour and flowers were all around and I grew up with an innate love of reflecting the environment around me. After leaving school I studied graphic design but found that the freedom of painting pulled me back in that direction. I now run online courses, and twice a year run two retreats where I love meeting my followers to encourage their own artful creativity."In the latest of our Meet the Maker series, we introduce you to the work of Carolyn Gavin, whom I joined for a wonderful painting retreat in Crete. With a shared love of colour, playfulness and nature, we chat work, painting, style and clothes! And as we say a soft farewell to summer, I reflect back to Carolyn's 'life-changing' retreat which re-kindled my love for painting. 

What inspires you to be joyful? "Deep down I'm a happy person and I find painting absolutely essential for the soul, at the same time it's meditative and calming. Nature brings me so much joy and I'm constantly looking at the possibilities that it can bring to my work." 

 

Sunflowers in September - a collaged vase of vibrant sunflowers from Carolyn reflects the Sunflower Stepney dress and made in one of Carolyn's favourite patterns - a simple two colour gingham.

"I like simplicity and freshness of stripes and gingham." And I love the linen, especially in these shapes that are so wearable and easy." 

Carolyn’s style resonates with her love of fresh colour and playful illustration. While Carolyn works with paper and paint, and I work with fabric and thread, we share a love of simplicity, natural cloth and uplifting, joyful florals.

Don't you just love these butterflies?

The Joyful Home! - Carolyn surrounded by beautiful colour, paint and pattern! 

Are there any other artists or art movements that you love?

"Matisse, Picasso, Chagall and Cezanne spring to mind. I also like discovering  contemporary artists on instagram. New materials can also inform my paintings, and make me discover new techniques."

I was lucky to join you on your Cretan art retreat this year? How often do you do retreats and what do you most love about hosting them? 

"I aim to plan two retreats a year, in interesting places around the world. Each retreat giving a different environment to draw inspiration. I've run retreats in Marrakech, Vietnam, Belize and beautiful spots in Europe. I'm currently looking to Corsica, India and perhaps Sri Lanka and Japan. The main thing is to find a beautiful setting, home and well run place to share, relax and learn. 

Running the retreats gives me the opportunity to do hands on teaching, visually in front of you. Whilst I can guide on my online courses, there's nothing like the in real life experience." 

Carolyn's first painting on the retreat. I was blown away by the amount of colours she created in just one stem and the effortless way she painted. Start with the real thing and then let your imagination run wild was a popular theme and as we loosened up over the course of the week, our flowers became more fantastical, our fruits more fluid!

Happy days in technicolour! Crete was the perfect environment reflecting Carolyn's love of nature and colour. Every day we gathered flowers, fruit, and made beautiful chaos on the painting table! 

Some top tips I've learnt from Carolyn!  

- Grip the brush high up on the handle to keep your painting loose!

- Keep a little paint station out at all times, then you can pick up within a few minutes and painting becomes part of the day! (I've found I can paint whilst the kettle boils in the morning!)

- Don't be afraid of adding unexpected colours, use darks and lights!

- If you're not happy with a painting, no worries, simply tear it up and use for collage on your next piece of art!

- Watercolours are fluid, go with the flow! 

There are no mistakes! 

Below - our group paintings with collage, sharing our torn up paintings and adding our own brushwork. Carolyn encouraged us to work from nature and then express our imagination! 

A dreamy Crete retreat - flanked by the coastal landscape of North West Crete, overlooking the shimmering sea, Carolyn's retreat brought together an incredible bunch of women from all over the world whom have become lifelong friends. Days were spent painting, swimming, visiting botanical gardens, sharing life! We stayed at two typical Cretan homes, hosted by Elina from Dear Island Retreats and even had Cretan cooking lessons from her mother and friend's Grandmother!  A truly amazing week. 

I packed my most joyful pieces from the collection for the retreat in Crete. The painterly blooms of the Liberty Beau Stripe fitted right in!

DISCOVER MORE ABOUT CAROLYN on her instagram @carolynj and via her website carolyngavin.com

For other beautiful art retreats in Crete discover Dear Island Retreats