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Hands Be Still (Mary Poppins) - Large Limited Edition

Mark Davies British Artist

£645.00

  • ‘Hands Be Still’ is inspired by ‘Mary Poppins’, it shows this moment in time just prior to my 2017 piece ‘It’s Not Goodbye’ and it’s effectively everything stopping. So, what you can see in the image is an absolute buzz from all the butterflies fluttering around, the smoke rising up from the chimneys, the sunlight coming through the buildings, the clouds, the birds, the clock within the glass dome with the hands running away from themselves. Everything’s just stopped. The working title for the image was ‘Please Don’t Leave’ linking to ‘It’s Not Goodbye’, it’s two people effectively talking to each other, silently if anything, reassuring that nothing is forever, and we will meet again. So, it’s a really beautifully, poignant concept behind a very pretty image.

    It actually relates to a 2016 commissioned piece entitled ‘The Beast From The East’ which was a much darker concept where it’s showing within the same setting, a toxic, dominating relationship that Mary and Bert had. It was something that I completely put together myself and it was pretty intense! Yet what you now see is that it’s a new chapter, things have moved on, evolved and are much lighter. What you have within this ultra-urban space is the impact of this persons work, where everything is so beautiful and unexpected within that environment and it’s what you leave behind, effectively.

    This concept of evolution with the butterflies being set free, the leaves changing colour, the flowers growing and withering but new ones coming in their place, there’s just so much going on. It’s an image that I feel incredibly happy to have created, there’s a sense of comfort achieved, it’s how I talk through my art. I hope that so many people will find the same sort of comfort within this piece from what I’m trying to say, as well as it being a really quirky reference to ‘Mary Poppins’. The penguins that I’ve used quite a few times before that I now show as these little topiary creatures that are stood there guarding the clock, there’s so much to seek out and I’ve loved every minute, it’s a really, really special picture.

     

    1. Released: 2021
    2. Collection: Storyteller
    3. Edition Size: 10 + 2AP
    4. Specification: Limited edition fine art print, hand signed by artist.
    5. Image Size: 38” x 24"
    6. Framed Size (Approx): 49.5” x 35"
    1. Get in touch for overseas delivery
    2. Please allow approximately 14 days for delivery, should you need delivery sooner please let us know.

Category: butterflies, fairytales, it's not goodbye, london, mary poppins

Type: Limited Edition

Commissions

When workload allows Mark embraces client commissions and has enjoyed amazing success to date. If you have been inspired by the work that you have seen and have a specific idea or simply a seed then please do get in touch.

Commission Enquiries

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Cast Off Your Shackles (Mary Poppins) - Canvas Limited Edition

£1,295.00

  • With this piece I wanted to focus on creating emotion and feeling within the scene rather than a deep concept. The horse that takes centre stage shows so much emotion and is deep in thought, majestic almost. My aim is to first see the beautiful horse in its’ surroundings and then notice the pole, painted saddle and the cracked skin to reveal signs of a darker past. Now that the horse has broken free it has cast off the shackles of yesterday and embracing the freedom that comes from that.

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    For me it epitomises what I am conveying through this image, beauty, intrigue, freedom, hope and subtle randomness. The two central penguins are deep in conversation, possibly gossiping about their love-struck friend!

    1. Released: 2021
    2. Collection: Storyteller
    3. Edition Size: 5 + 1AP
    4. Specification: Limited edition fine art print, hand signed by artist.
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    1. Get in touch for overseas delivery
    2. Please allow approximately 14 days for delivery, should you need delivery sooner please let us know.
View full product details
 

Cast Off Your Shackles (Mary Poppins) - Standard Limited Edition

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  • With this piece I wanted to focus on creating emotion and feeling within the scene rather than a deep concept. The horse that takes centre stage shows so much emotion and is deep in thought, majestic almost. My aim is to first see the beautiful horse in its’ surroundings and then notice the pole, painted saddle and the cracked skin to reveal signs of a darker past. Now that the horse has broken free it has cast off the shackles of yesterday and embracing the freedom that comes from that.

    This is mirrored by the suggested relationship between Mary and Bert which shows a number of references to this and how they have brought what was once hidden into the open for all to see! Objects within the grass that typically shock are made to look beautiful as this is how the two love birds see what they have between each other.

    What I have created is a scene based on the original narrative that is set in parkland on a beautiful English Summers’ day with the dome of St Pauls showing over the treetops. A racecourse extends across the composition with riders and horses thundering by. Light as always plays a key role here creating warmth and calm whilst the brighter areas are there to represent hope.

    Butterflies flutter around the pole moving upwards, the style of these has been done in a way that relates to the flat colours of those used in the film as contrast to the background. Dandelions fill the grass to enhance the lightness and delicateness of the piece, there are tiny seed details where they are floating upwards. In the background there is Mary Poppins’ carpet bag and the white umbrella that she held within the park / fair scene with subtle hints of magical detail surrounding it. Birds are a key part of the film and I have includes two within the softened background, as well as Berts’ blue bow-tie that rests against Mary’s bag. Nestled within the grass is the signature Matryoshka doll that references my first published collection.

    Key characters from the story stand within the long grass, a disgruntled turtle and some penguins, of course! I deliberately left until last as it was a case of how on earth do you introduce such characters into such a beautiful scene without it looking random and stark. So what I have done is create a connection between one of the penguins and the horse where they are fixed on each other. There is subtle dream-like lighting detail and icons that are radiating off the penguin leading upwards to the horse, it creates something really wonderful and more importantly a talking point as to what is going on and why there is such a lovely affiliation.

    For me it epitomises what I am conveying through this image, beauty, intrigue, freedom, hope and subtle randomness. The two central penguins are deep in conversation, possibly gossiping about their love-struck friend!

    1. Released: 2021
    2. Collection: Storyteller
    3. Edition Size: 25 + 5AP
    4. Specification: Limited edition fine art print, hand signed by artist.
    5. Image Size: 25” x 18.5"
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    1. Get in touch for overseas delivery
    2. Please allow approximately 14 days for delivery, should you need delivery sooner please let us know.
View full product details

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