About Toulla Simon
I was born in London and lived and worked there until my late twenties. Now living in the county of Hertfordshire, just on the outskirts of London, I have access not only to London, but also to beautiful countryside, villages and towns which are reflected in my work.
From a very early age I always loved drawing and I will be ever grateful to my parents for their encouragement, when at the age of 12 they bought me my first oil painting set and I have been painting ever since. I have not allowed any modern art teaching influence me in any way and as a result, my style and technique remains unique. Although completely self-taught, I would acknowledge that some influence came from personally studying the technical skill of traditional art by the old masters such as John Constable, Canaletto, Johannes Vermeer and others of their generations.
With a keen interest in architecture, my travels have taken me to historical cities in Europe, with Venice, the Tuscany region with its medieval walled cities and the Roman city of Bath being amongst my favourites. Much of my inspiration comes from these places and the beautiful island of Cyprus which I frequently visit. With camera in hand I am always ready to capture images of an interesting building, narrow streets and local people and tourists going about their day. These images are then used as reference material to create new work back in the studio. I often return to a scene I am in the process of painting to take notes and make sure I am happy with the way the work is progressing rather than just relying on the photographic references. Figures feature in most of my paintings as they are important to me to convey to the viewer a sense of movement, narration and life.
A considerable amount of my commissioned work has been portraits of people, pets, private homes, restaurants, hotels and pubs, with a number of works in private collections in the UK, USA, Canada, and Cyprus. As well as selected work in exhibitions, I have also managed and held solo exhibitions in London, Watford and Cyprus. One of my exhibitions in Cyprus was inaugurated by a former first lady and was featured on national television. As well as painting, and exhibiting I also enjoy teaching and demonstrating my style of art.
Awards & Recognition
THE BATH PRIZE EXHIBITION 2010
PREMIER GALLERY
MOST POPULAR ART OF THE MONTH – JULY 2011
Fishermen’s Boats
THE ARTIST – PATCHINGS 2011
HIGHLY COMMENDED
The Fishermen’s Boats
THE ARTIST’S PUBLISHING CO
PAINTERS ON-LINE NEWSLETTER FEBRUARY 2011
The Winter in Attenborough Fields
ARTIST’S & ILLUSTRATORS
FEATURED ART DECEMBER 2011
Me, My Cavalier & The Woman In Red
SAA ARTIST OF THE YEAR 2012
HIGHLY COMMENDED
The Phone & Boot
Me, My Cavalier & The Woman in Red
Cav Pups
The Bridesmaid’s Basket
Geese in Winter Freeze
THE ROYAL INSTITUTE OF PAINTERS IN WATERCOLOUR OPEN EXHIBITION 2012
PRE-SELECTION
Me, My Cavalier & The Woman in Red
The Bridesmaid’s Basket
THE ROYAL INSTITUTE OF OIL PAINTERS OPEN EXHIBITION 2012
PRE-SELECTION
The Fishermen’s Boats
Pump House Tea For Three
Winter Morning In Attenborough Fields
PAINTERS ON-LINE
CHOSEN IMAGE FOR THE MONTH – FEBRUARY 2013
The Coffee Shop
ARTISTS AND ILLUSTRATORS
WINTER WONDERLAND EXHIBITION 2012
The Back of Cross Road
ARTISTS AND ILLUSTRATORS
BIRDS EXHIBITION 2013
Bantam Cockerel
THE ROYAL BATH & WEST SELECTED EXHIBITION 2013
The Fishermen Boats
Me, My Cavalier & The Woman in Red
PUBLIC VOTE AWARD WINNER 2013
Me, My Cavalier & The Woman in Red
BATH SOCIETY OF ARTISTS ANNUAL SELECTED EXHIBITION 2013
Me, My Cavalier & The Woman in Red
Lania Village Siesta
ROYAL SOCIETY OF MARINE ARTISTS ANNUAL EXHIBITION 2013
PRE-SELECTION
The Fishermen,s Boats
Aphrodite’s Rock Myth
THE ROYAL INSTITUTE OF OIL PAINTERS OPEN EXHIBITION 2013
PRE-SELECTION
The Tourist March, Abbeygate, Bath
THE ARTIST’S PUBLISHING CO. LTD
THE ARTIST, LEISURE PAINTER MAGAZINE
PAINT FROM YOUR FAMILY ALBUM COMPETITION 2013 (DERWENT)
RUNNER UP
The Bridesmaid’s Basket
THE ARTIST – PATCHINGS 2014
HIGHLY COMMENDED
Pump House Tea For Three
THE ARTIST – PATCHINGS 2016
HIGHLY COMMENDED
The Village Blacksmith
SAA ARTIST OF THE YEAR 2016
With over 3,000 entries, The Moonlight Ballerina got through to next round of just 160
THE SUNDAY TIMES WATERCOLOUR 2016
Selected for final round judging
The Village Blacksmith
JACKSON’S OPEN PAINTING PRIZE 2017
2,211 entries, long list of 220
The Village Blacksmith
The Bridesmaid’s Basket