Artist challenges:
Being organised! Something that is regularly heard by me "I'm just going to... Oh no! Where are my paints, pens, paper, etc?"...
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| First painting in oils |
Favourite artist:
I find that difficult to answer as there are so many whose work I greatly admire, contemporary ones such as Kurt Jackson, Claire Wiltshire, Amanda Hoskins, Maurice Sappiro and Ken Knight. Going back through time, though, I can't ignore Turner, Constable, Van Gogh, Monet, Pissarro, Renoir, Gwen John, Klimt and numerous others.
How did you get into art?:
From childhood, I have always loved art: drawing, painting and just looking at it. I like to be outdoors, enjoying timeless, unspoilt scenery and vast skies. I appreciate the way that light changes the atmosphere and mood of a place. If you can manage to capture just a little bit of what you are trying for, painting can be really exciting. As an artist, I aim to continue to improve my skills, but I also want my paintings to say something.
When I was a little girl I would play with my crayons and paints. I'm still playing today and I think that's important, there's no point in art if it is a laboured chore. As well as my childhood play, I was influenced by watching Adrian Hill and Tony Hart on TV, often trying out projects for myself.
Moving on to secondary school, I was fortunate in having an amazing art teacher, a gifted teacher of painting and drawing who really taught and art became my favourite lesson.
It wasn’t until many years later that I returned to art, taking mainly local classes in oils, watercolour, acrylics, drawing and composition over the years. I am extremely grateful for the encouragement and insights given to me by the different tutors of those classes. I started to attend the St Martins art class led by Becky Newell and this has become an important time for me where I can take time out and indulge in making art in an atmosphere of encouragement and (always) constructive criticism.
I love to try something new, be it a new medium or technique and I get very absorbed in looking at art, studying the work of many different artists.
Doing art changes the way you look at things, I could spend hours studying trees or clouds, thinking about colours, shapes and the ways that the objects in a scene relate to each other and continuously have a painting in my head to work out. I am inspired by many different things but always seem to return to the sky and sea, and their different moods, hoping to bring those feelings to my paintings and I think that somehow, whatever you're feeling comes across if you are truly involved with the subject.
Education:
I recently took part in an Art School held at MAC, Birmingham along with many other artists. I decided to paint on the theme or 'Peace' and what it means to me. As a person who sees letters in colours I choose to take the colours that I see the letters of the word 'peace' as and do a painting for each letter. Based on one of the most peaceful places I know, the Norfolk coast. When I see a letter in isolation it always has a colour.
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| 'P' is blue - 'Blue Beach' |
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| 'E' is yellow - 'Yellow Reeds' |
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| 'A' is green - 'Green Alexanders' |
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| 'C' is blue - 'Blue Rockpool' |
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| 'E' is yellow - 'Yellow Beach' |
These prints have been in an exhibition in Cambridge for a month and I have been chuffed to have sold some.
Some of my 'Cat Portraits' were in the same exhibition, these were painted for charity, to help a project in Egypt which cares for children who have to live and work in Cairo Brick Factories. These are quite different to my usual work and fun to do.
Anything Else:
Recently I have started to help Becky in the St. Peter's Origin Arts class and have begun to lead a small art club in central Worcester, it's great to be able to encourage others and pass on some of the things that I have learnt.
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| Favourite luxury - Strawberries |
I am constantly wanting to explore different mediums and techniques, art is so interesting! I've used pencils, charcoal, graphite, watercolour, gouache, oils, acrylics and felting.
Recently done a Batik workshop and can't wait to get started on working in at home.
I started oils many years ago by joining an evening class having a little exhibition in the local library. I find art where the classes were held and that was the beginning of my addiction.
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