Artist Statement

My paintings are a minestrone of sources, personal memories of past events, childhood, family, places lived in and visited and working life; all common human experience.

Colour and Dynamism have always been my obsessions and are central to both my paintings and to my design work for Television; the tools with which I express myself.

I grew up in Devon where rolling hills, wild moors and dramatic seascapes played an enormous part in my childhood, a country girl at heart. For the past 28 years I have lived and worked in London, a temporary urban life….. Consciously and subconsciously these places and their iconic shapes often emerge and I do not attempt to suppress them but I am not interested in making representations of places and events but rather view the action of painting as making visible my internal landscape, resulting in work that is semi-abstract and as Howard Hodgkin says of his work, "It hovers on the edge of scenic recognition".

The clue to the painted story is often in the title; sometimes a play on words, a making light / making sense of joyful / painful memories with humour. The title also reflects the theme of the original emotional catalyst for the painting. However, during the course of the painting, the surface colour, depth and texture grow, and develop through chance happenings which parallel my original emotional intent. This fascinates me as it also parallels the chances and controls that are reflected in our own lives: so here I find new inspiration within the work, a passion for the process itself and what I can make happen and what I will allow to happen. Consequently it is not important for the viewer to understand or have knowledge of the original event that inspired the work, "The picture is instead of what happened", again, Howard Hodgkin. The painting becomes an event in its own right.

I would like my work to convey a bold atmosphere, a mood, a scent of emotion which can be read in whichever way is chosen by the viewer, a trigger in itself for their own emotions, thoughts and memories.

Qualifications

Performances / Exhibitions / Public Art

Teaching / Lecturing

Television Production Design

Design