Meet one of our recent Resin8 Art Competition Winners, Amber-Lauren Ballantyne-Styles
I’m a 19 year old professional commercial artist and I bypassed university in order to launch my brand Amber-Lauren Fine Art. I secured the mentoring of The Prince’s Trust in April 2014 and I have applied to become an Ambassador for the Trust so I can help other young people in their quest to make their vocational dreams come true. I’ve been in correspondence with Prince Charles himself, who is delighted with my success so far thanks to The Trust.
My art business developed out of adversity when I was harangued by my acrobatic gymnastics coach at the age of 13. If you’re reading this whilst having a coffee break, all will be revealed if you watched a Youtube video that my Mum made to help me through this difficult period in my life.
As well as other charitable work, it is important to me to champion young girls and women with body image and bullying issues. Last year I donated a painting for auction to B-eat, the UK’s largest eating disorder charity, to help raise funds and awareness.
Having been home educated from the age of 11, I was accepted into college a year early where I studied for a Diploma in Art and Design. I went on to do a Foundation in A&D to secure a university place at The Ruskin in Oxford where their admission limit is 24 per year out of thousands of hopefuls! I wasn’t one of the lucky few, but this was to be the catalyst that motivated me to start my business plan – and most importantly getting a collection of art together!
I held my first exhibition in Oxford aged 17 which attracted the press, TV and radio and from then on, I never looked back! I’ve been featured in several online magazines and I’ve won two major Art Awards this year including Art Superstar at the Oxford Youth Awards and Resin8 . My clients includePirelli F1 Motorsport, Latona Leisure - a large UK Hotel chain and celebrity art collector, author and former ‘Bond Girl’ actress, Fiona Fullerton. I’ve procured some great testimonials from Sir Richard Branson, Sonia Meaden (mother of Deborah Meaden from The Dragon’s Den!), Fiona Fullerton and New York art critic, James Skully from Wallbreakers. The Cotswold Life Magazine are writing a centre-spread feature on me for the October edition. In the photo, I’m finishing my latest Pop Art portrait of Uma Thurman, taken from the Pulp Fiction movie. It’s 20 years since this iconic film was made, which coincides with my 20th Birthday, so we’ve contacted Uma’s agent to ask if she will endorse the painting.
As well as several exhibitions in the UK, my work is now in the following galleries – Art for Art’s Sake in Twyford, Berkshire and The Burford Garden Company Art Gallery in the Cotswolds. As part of The Prince’s Trust, I have been commissioned to paint a showcase piece for an auction in October at the prestigious Castle Fine Art Gallery in London’s Mayfair, to help raise funds for The Trust.
Thanks to the wonders of Social Media, I’ve sold much of my art and I’m currently in talks with a New York artist with whom I am discussing a show inManhattan before Christmas 2014. I’m also working on a very exciting Art Show project in London with The Cult House and its creator, J A Neto from Brazil. My work will be part of the launch of his first Pop-Up show in Brick Lane on the 5th and 6th September. In addition I’ve been sought out by The South Galleries French curator Martial Durou, to be a guest artist in a brand new gallery in London.
The Prince’s Trust’s ‘Tomorrow’s Store’ in Liverpool Street, London have also invited me to do a Pop-Up gallery in October as well as do some ‘live painting’ in the store. I have a collection of wearable art silk scarves/wall hangings that depict some of my paintings for which they’ve agreed to order!John Lewis Group also love my scarf designs and have agreed in principal to place an order.
I very recently won an award with Eli-Chem Resins Uk Ltd., (suppliers of the resin glaze I use on many of my paintings) and as well as a cash/product prize, I was given a listing on the global artist's website Artist’s Info. As a direct result of being on this site, I’m now in talks with a very young artist and her mother from New Hampshire, northern USA. There are so many parallels to this gifted artist and myself, it’s quite uncanny! I know my story about being bullied and subsequent success (so far) has been a great inspiration to this family. Amaranthia Sepia Gittens-Jones the artist whose name is above mine on this site’s listing, is using her art to help heal the emotional scars caused by the perpetrators who inflicted relentless bullying and racial abuse. Now home schooled at just 14 years old, “AmaSepiaChan” is already stirring the interest of the media in the US which is catapulting her into the eyes of art collectors! "Amaranthia's Mom was so touched and inspired by my story she has nominated me for a CNN Hero Award! Amaranthia and I have done much charitable work and my most recent donation to the Rays of Sunshine Children’s Charity was held in the prestigious Berkeley Square in London’s Mayfair where my painting outsold a Tracey Emin and was auctioned alongside a Salvador Dali and a Sir Peter Blake!
On a day to day basis, I teach art to children and adults one-to-one and in groups in my art studio in Garsington, Oxford, UK. For more information and to purchase my Art, please go to my website: or you can follow me on Twitter: https://twitter.com/ALBSfineart or Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/AmberLaurenFineArt
