Press

Young Jains Magazine: February 2011

An article by Hayley Brown featured in the February issue of 'Young Jains Magazine' and was included on the website for 'The Institute of Jainology'.

Lewes Art Wave 2010 Video

View the following link to see the artist Hayley Brown painting her ceramic favours at the Star Pottery in Lewes during Lewes Art Wave 2010 (View the 9 minute video from minutes 2:23 to 3:05) http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rMoaxvRFcNE

Your Heart Has Moved To Jaipur Painting
Jaipur City Newspaper: 25 May 2008

‘I want to put my whole life into art because art is a subject which gives me peace.’ This is what Hayley has to say who has her heart on Miniature Traditional work. One year ago, Hayley came to the Pink City as a tourist but she got very addicted to Miniature Painting that it can be seen in her whole body. That is why from London she has come again to learn the nitty gritty of this art.

Hayley has got her interest of painting as a lineage [inheritance] because her mum Jennie was doing Chinese wash painting. But Hayley is learning and getting interest in this art from the famous Jaipur Miniature Painter Ramu Ramdev. Hayley says besides India she has not found this kind of work anywhere else in the world. In London she doesn’t have miniature brushes and they are very difficult to find. Because of this she has come all the way to India to buy the brushes. While buying the brushes she came to find out about this institute in Vaishali Nagar of Jaipur; this workshop and training class on this traditional art. She immediately decided to join it. [Invited to join by Shyamu Ramdev, artist at City Palace, Jaipur].

Starting from 15 May, for 15 days this workshop is putting more emphasis on traditional work. Hayley explains that the first time she completed her miniature painting there were tears in her eyes. She feels immense happiness doing it. She particularly likes the make up of the female character in this style of painting.

This addiction of miniature painting is increasing each passing day. Besides this kind of painting, she’s also interested in Hindi Movies. Some of her favourite are Shahkhun Khan in Devdas and Aishwariyarai in Umrao Jaan. She’s also interested in listening to Classical [Indian] music. While leaving Jaipur she wants to carry lots of painting brushes and memories of her friends with her to London. She has a wish from her heart before 27 May she could finish the Radha and Krishna painting so she can take it back with her to London. Hayley’s teacher Mr Ramu Ramdev says that, ‘she has the urge to learn new things and anything explained to her she comes out on top of it.’

Enchanting Indian Miniatures - Hayley Brown
The Brighton Collective January 15, 2010

To read Hannah Bradbury's Blog Article visit the following site. http://www.thebrightoncollective.co.uk/blog/2010/01/enchanting-indian-miniatures-hayley-brown/

Indian Miniature Painting in Brighton
Fiveways Directory Brighton January 2010

Local artist Hayley Brown has an unusual story to tell about her journey into Mughal Art and the ancient art of Indian Miniature Painting. Hayley Brown lives and works in her studio at home, in Brighton, off the Lewes Road. Originally, Hayley was born in Kent but has strong links to India through her half - Indian brother and cousins in this country.

At the age of seven she discovered that her family had links to India and since then has developed a strong love of Indian art, music, textiles and is learning Hindi script and language one day a week near the Brighton Pavilion. Hayley has been an artist and a teacher for 16 years. She used to teach at Primary School and Undergraduate level. Then, after several years as an Art Gallery and Studios manager, for the former Star Gallery in Lewes, Hayley had the opportunity to meet her Indian family and sister near Mumbai.

She felt very at home there and in the subsequent years has returned to India - initially with the desire to paint and then more recently to buy specialist single hair miniature brushes. On her second visit to India, Hayley travelled alone. She stayed in a family run hotel which used to be a hunting lodge. The hotel was very picturesque and decorated inside and out with wall paintings. This type of decorated home is called an Havelli.

On her first day of sightseeing she visited a local palace and inside the galleries, met with the resident artists. They invited her to spend the rest of her trip learning to paint Mughal style flowers using the art of mininature shading. The following year, she returned to the palace and they invited her again to join a private class where she learned how to paint religous and romantic scenes with layers of gilded and diaphonous silk cloth, palaces, landscapes and bejewelled figures. The press came to advertise the school and focused two of their articles just on Hayley's presence at the school.

After both of these trips Hayley left her full time employment and began painting Indian Miniatures, murals and works on wood. She has even decorated a 17th Century replica virginal for a world renowned harpsichord maker. The instrument has even been played in very prestigous venues by world experts.

She has shown her work in the Star Gallery in Lewes, Hastings Museum and Art Gallery and the Grand Hotel in Folkestone, Kent. She has also shown her work in contemporary art galleries, craft shows and a Kent Library. She has begun teaching sell-out classes at the Victoria and Albert Museum in London. You can see some of Hayley's work on her website www.indianminiatures.com and later this year larger murals and details of classes will available on this site.

During the week, when Hayley is not painting, she teaches Indian Miniature Painting, Buddhist Mandala art and she also runs popular classes where Beginners or advanced painters can come regularly for two hour sessions painting in the style of their favourite artists and learning how to paint and mix colours. Hayley's own art is often in oil on canvas or walls but she also likes to paint in egg tempera mixing up her own colours with ground pigment and egg yolk.