Listen: Rural artist Amelia Guild

Artist Amelia Guild. Photo / Supplied

Amelia Guild is a self-taught artist who paints vibrant acrylic images of rural life.

She lives on a high country sheep, beef and deer station and loves portraying her brother's Hereford cows in the kind of bright, pop art colours not normally associated with agriculture.

"Found is Marbles" Photo / Supplied

Amelia's love of art started at high school in Christchurch and she admits that she was painting cows back then as well. She spoke to The Country Early Edition's Dom George about making a career in the art world while sticking to her rural roots.

Guild says although her following is predominantly rural she has had success elsewhere as "cows translate" and "you don't have to own one to appreciate having one on your wall."

High Peaks Station in Rakaia Gorge is where Amelia currently resides with her beekeeper husband, two brothers and mum and dad - they've had to diversify to support all four families.

They manage this by running a sheep, beef and deer farming operation, along with game hunting and beekeeping.

Guild is guest painter at Art in a Garden and will be displaying 10 "new big acrylic canvases of cattle," alongside 80 other artists showing their works at Flaxmere gardens in North Canterbury.

Painting is not Amelia's only artistic endeavour, she is also performs rural comedy under her married name Amelia Dunbar. She has been performing a dog-based comedy show The Bitches' Box for about five years now.

Would you like to win a double pass to Art in a Garden to see Amelia's work? Enter our competition here.

Find out more about Amelia's art on her website here.

Listen to the full interview in the Soundcloud embed below: