New Light: A Summer Selection

There is a particular quality to summer light. It can be bright and expansive, softened by haze, reflected across water, or held for a moment in the colour of a garden.

New Light: A Summer Selection brings together sixteen original paintings chosen for their sense of openness, atmosphere and seasonal energy. Moving between coastal horizons, abstracted landscapes, flowers in bloom and richly worked surfaces, the collection reflects summer not as a single mood, but as a series of shifting experiences.

From miniature paintings priced at £225 to larger statement works, the selection offers different ways to bring colour, light and original art into the home.

Small in scale, expansive in feeling

A small painting does not necessarily describe a small experience.

In Where the Sea and Sky Meet, Yellow Light Over the Levels and The Tenderness of Things, landscape is condensed into an intimate scale without losing its sense of distance. A line of horizon, a break in the clouds or a gathering of flowers can create the impression of a world continuing far beyond the edges of the painting.

Each of these miniature works measures just 10 × 10cm, framed to 25 × 25cm. They are particularly easy to place alone, in pairs or as part of a larger collection, and offer an accessible way to begin collecting original art.

Their scale also makes them especially suited to quieter spaces: a bedside wall, a shelf, an alcove or a small area between architectural features.

Flowers gathered in summer

Several works in the selection turn towards flowers, but each approaches the subject differently.

In Flowers on the Table, the arrangement has a quiet, formal presence. Soft colour and restrained movement give the painting a sense of stillness, while the pale ground allows the flowers to hold the space gently.

Still Life with Wild Roses and The Wilds of June are looser and more abundant. Their flowers appear gathered rather than arranged, with stems, petals and foliage pushing outwards across the surface. Both paintings capture the particular energy of summer growth: beautiful, unruly and already beginning to change.

The Tenderness of Things, though much smaller in scale, holds a similarly intimate quality. The flowers feel briefly observed, as though caught in a private moment rather than carefully posed.

Coast, sky and open distance

Summer is also a season of horizon lines and changing water.

Luminescent Sea by Laura Menzies draws the eye towards an area of intense turquoise and blue, balancing openness with a strong sense of movement. The painting feels less like a description of a specific coast than an impression of sea light remembered.

In Walking on Air, by Georgia Elliott the landscape is brighter and more expansive. Soft blues, greens and pale atmospheric colour create a feeling of openness, while the larger scale gives the work a strong physical presence.

Where the Sea and Sky Meet by Hannah Ivory Baker distils a similar sensation into miniature form. The painting is small, but the horizon remains broad, allowing the work to feel calm and surprisingly spacious.

Weather, distance and atmosphere

Not all summer light is clear or bright. Some of the season’s most memorable moments arrive when weather moves across the landscape.

Blue Mists by Karina Nixon is inspired by the atmosphere of the ancient ruins of Corfe Castle in Dorset. The dark forms of the castle rise through layers of blue-green haze, creating a landscape that feels both distant and immediate. Rather than describing every detail, the painting allows the architecture to emerge gradually through colour and atmosphere.

Yellow Light Over the Levels captures another transitional moment. A low horizon and glowing band of light suggest the landscape briefly opening before the weather shifts again.

Birdsong, by Georgia Elliott, painted en plein air, carries the immediacy of direct observation. Its marks remain responsive and energetic, recording not only the appearance of the landscape but also the movement, sound and changing conditions experienced while painting outdoors.

Colour, material and movement

Several works in the selection move further away from recognisable landscape and towards colour, surface and rhythm.

Ferric Teal Ore by Sam Peacock brings together coppery reds, oxidised tones and cool blue-green bands in a composition that feels elemental and geological. Its materials and palette suggest mineral surfaces, waterlines and weathered land.

Carried Slowly by Rebecca Hardaker is richly worked with oil, cloth and dried flowers. Its surface rewards close attention, with fragments of colour and texture accumulating across the canvas. The result is both abstract and organic, carrying a sense of growth, erosion and gradual change.

The two Landscape Study by Rebecca Hardaker works also combine oil with cloth and dried flowers. Their smaller scale and dense surfaces make them feel like concentrated fragments of a wider landscape, where colour and material become inseparable.

In Garden Palette, by Emma Lock soft greens, white, pink and pale earth tones are brought together in a tall, fluid composition. The title is apt: the work feels like a garden remembered through colour rather than described literally.

One of the Best Days by Diane Whalley introduces another register entirely. Its bright, open palette and expressive marks give the painting a sense of energy and optimism, while the generous scale allows the colour to fill a room.

Living with original art

The works in this selection range from intimate miniatures to paintings designed to become the focal point of a room.

Smaller works can bring character to spaces that are often overlooked. They can sit comfortably above a bedside table, on a narrow wall, within shelving or as part of a growing salon-style arrangement.

Mid-sized paintings such as Luminescent Sea, Garden Palette and Birdsong are especially versatile. They have enough presence to hold a wall independently while remaining easy to place within bedrooms, kitchens, hallways and sitting rooms.

Larger works including Walking on Air, Ferric Teal Ore, Carried Slowly and One of the Best Days create a different relationship with a room. Their scale allows colour, movement and texture to shape the atmosphere of the entire space.

The right painting is not always the one that matches a room most closely. Often, it is the work that introduces something the space is missing: depth, softness, colour, contrast or a stronger sense of identity.

We offer complimentary room mock-ups for anyone considering a painting from the selection. Simply send us a photograph of your wall, together with an approximate measurement, and we can show you how the work might look in place.

Explore New Light

New Light: A Summer Selection brings together sixteen original paintings that reflect the season through flowers, coast, weather, colour and changing atmosphere.

From miniature landscapes priced at £225 to large-scale works in oil and mixed media, the collection offers a wide range of scale, material and mood, while remaining connected by a shared sense of movement and light.