The Artist and The Work
I have been a practising artist for forty years. Born and educated in London, I left the city over thirty years ago to take up rural life on the edge of a small agricultural village in Somerset. Here I worked, both as an artist and as an art educator in many different forms. In addition to this, I brought up a family of three children and housed a large collection of assorted animals. In 2017 I moved to The Lizard in Cornwall.
The natural landscape has always been a source of inspiration and was a guiding force in my decision to leave London. Initially my work centred in and around the local landscape in Somerset, followed by an opportunity to work regularly for several years in the seaside town of Lyme Regis. For the last 12 years I have been working on the coastlines of Cornwall. Throughout this time I have undertaken short working trips to Greece, Cuba, Morocco, La Gomera and Newfoundland, Canada.
For many years I have developed my work through a close association with the act of walking in different environments. My work centres around journeys – both physical and mental – and I think of these images as maps. Walking is a daily activity and an essential part of my work. I have walked through landscapes in all weathers and seasons and explored themes of time, scale and sensations. I use a variety of methods to collect material: make sketches: write: collect and gather: take sound recordings and photos: walk, sit and think. Observational work has always been a key part of my practice but I have also developed alternative ways of conveying my experience of a landscape using a combination of viewpoints, maps and memories. My work aims to enhance a sense of connection to the landscape and a space in which to reflect on our relationship to the natural world.
In my recent work I have been exploring the notion of time and how it might be possible to use landscape to express time passing. I have reacquainted myself with the spontaneity of painting in situ. I return weekly to the same set of landscapes to record a visual diary of the changing weathers and seasons. It is an exploration that is in the early stages of development.
Educational Work
My life as an artist has been split between my studio practice and involvement in all aspects of art education. I consider communication with the public about artistic endeavour to be an important part of my work as an artist. I have worked with communities from kindergarten age to senior citizens and in education from Primary to Post Graduate students. This has included mainstream and alternative education, community projects in rural and urban settings, hospitals, museums, churches, village halls and outdoor education, enabling individual and collaborative work to take place.
I spent 10 years as a part time tutor and lecturer in various art schools including: Camberwell School of Arts and Crafts: Brighton Polytechnic: Kingston Polytechnic: East Surrey College of Art and Design: Bath College of Higher Education. Following a move to Somerset in 1987 I became an artist in residence for the Education department at the County Council for the next 20 years, teaching Printmaking, Painting, Drawing and Sculpture in a variety of schools. I also worked as a tutor for the Education Department ‘Inset’ days in the area of Textile design and in Printmaking for teachers. Later I worked as a part time lecturer at Bath University in History of Art and Design.