From an early age I loved drawing, painting and craft and I remember being certain art was always going to play a major role in my life. As expected, I completed GCSE and A-level Art and Design, followed by a foundation course in Art and Design and the fist year of a Fine Art degree. By the end of this year my Mental Health was in shatters, to me art had always felt to be a very personal and intimate expression; to have my work critiqued on a regular basis was harrowing, so i made the hard decision to pursue another path.
I went on to complete a degree in English Studies, followed a postgraduate qualification and a career in librarianship, but art was never far from my mind. Everywhere I went I took photos, with paintings or creations in mind, I took up knitting, crochet and sewing and occasionally I would allow myself to paint something ‘safe’.
When I had children I stopped working to focus on their upbringing. Gradually arts and crafts crept back into my life and over the past 7 years I have embraced a wide variety of creative pursuits including sewing, embroidery, machine embroidery, knitting, crochet, needle felting, jewellery making, paper-cutting and lino printing. More recently I have gathered the confidence to paint again and the recent global pandemic has afforded me the time and space at develop my style and regain my confidence.
I aim to represent the way I see the world in my paintings. Colour and texture are very important to me as I tend to notice these 2 elements in my environment above anything else. I love bright colours and tend to get quite excited over different colour combinations and effects.
As all artists are, I am influenced by the natural environment and my life experiences. Other influences include H.R.Geiger, Tim Burton and Margherita Manzelli among many others.
I hope you enjoy my paintings!