Antonia Rolls
Artist Extraordinaire
Welcome to my website.
I am an artist extraordinaire and many other things besides.
Perhaps, mostly, I am creative, expressive and delighted to be alive.
Part of being an artist is the joy of expression…
…and this takes the form of painting, writing, performing and public speaking.
I express how I am affected by the work I do, what it teaches me, and the stories of the people that I meet.
Much of the work that I do is about listening; listening to stories about living, dying and all the things that make us real. I create art projects on subjects that may be hard to think about, such as dying, death and at the moment, addiction. See the A Graceful Death and the Addicts And Those Who Love Them exhibitions.
I have over ten years of experience as a holistic end of life support and companion, and I run one to one and group workshops and listening support sessions on loss, grief and preparations for the end of life.
Part of being an artist is the joy of expression…
…and this takes the form of painting, writing, performing and public speaking.
I express how I am affected by the work I do, what it teaches me, and the stories of the people that I meet.
Much of the work that I do is about listening; listening to stories about living, dying and all the things that make us real. I create art projects on subjects that may be hard to think about, such as dying, death and at the moment, addiction. See the A Graceful Death and the Addicts And Those Who Love Them exhibitions.
I have over ten years of experience as a holistic end of life support and companion, and I run one to one and group workshops and listening support sessions on loss, grief and preparations for the end of life.
Events
My work is about connection.
I am interested in what is real for you, for me, for the people I work with, paint, support and write about. Sometimes the most helpful thing we can do is to really listen, to pay attention, and to be present for the person we are with. Connection, truth, love and kindness.
Click here to learn more about all my past and upcoming events.
Art
I have been a commission artist, painting portraits, quirky religious art, and anything asked of me.
I create figurative, bold and colourful paintings. I work in oils and in acrylics and my work includes portraits of both individuals and families, quirky sideways looks at our Christian story (see The Male Madonna, the God’s Life series, Jesus on the Tube), whimsical paintings exploring the True Fairy at middle age, and some book illustration which I have loved doing.
Projects
In 2007 my partner died, and in an effort to understand what was happening to him and to me, I painted his dying and his death. Since then I have gone on to work with and to paint and interview other people facing the end of life, this work makes up my A Graceful Death project.
Behind every addict, there is at least one person traumatised by loving them. My Addicts And Those Who Love Them project asks both the addict and the person who loves them to say something about how they are coping.
Writing
My writing includes published articles and my blog.
In my blog, I write about how life is for the people I meet, about the work I do, and how I feel about it all.
It is a place to think in print. It is interesting and entertaining, but I like to get at the heart of things and sometimes, when writing about such as addiction, dying, grief, it is tough. But I have a great regard for common sense and a bit of humour, so you don’t get lost in seriousness all the time. I have written about how my sofa is my spiritual home.
Connect
Connection and communication is central to my work. Join me on my journey by reading the blog, discussing my art or come and meet me at an exhibition or an event where I am showing or speaking.
Follow me on Instagram or Facebook where I share my life, my days and my stories – you can see a taster of my Instagram feed below.
If any of my work or stories inspire you to talk to me, or to hear more about me, please do get in touch. And if you would like to work with me, I’d love to hear from you.
