My Story...
I graduated from St Martin's College of Art in 1996 after doing a degree in Graphic Design and have worked as an artist since. I live in Newport, Wales with my two children.
In 2002 I opened a successful art gallery in Caerleon where I exhibited and sold my work and represented other local artists, introducing contemporary and abstract paintings and sculpture.
As my children grew up I spent time working with schools, nursing homes and arts festivals on large and small community arts projects. I also worked with the local scouts to facilitate their ideas and to teach textile skills. Later, I accidentally got a job with the wonderful and inspiring Janet Martin of Gwent Picture Framing and Barnabas Arts House, working in the workshop, gallery and cafe where I drew upon my experience as a gallerist and got over my limiting beliefs that I couldn't do waitressing. I was also given the opportunity to exhibit there too.
I decided to start designing greetings cards in 2013 after having success with my handmade cards. Although I still make a limited number of handmade cards, I find it a lot more rewarding to spend more time on a design and have it reproduced in print. I use The Imaging Center as my trusted printer who have a very high standard of digital print, environmental policies and card quality which I am sure you will love as much as I do. They are a fantastic way of making art affordable and I believe art should be accessible to all.
When I am painting, I am interested in building up layers of thin paint so you can still see the underlying layers. I try to remember thoughts and emotions, imagined worlds, and real ones. Shapes and forms found in nature are important to me. I love the finer details of natural objects and microscopic studying of them, which was a favorite pass time as a child. I was the typical daydreamer.
I just absolutely love textiles, it is my passion. I work with wool, textiles and embroidery, exploring these versatile materials, creating my own styles and designs. I have exhibited at Wonderwool Wales in the Royal Welsh Showgrounds and have taught crochet, sewing and weaving classes at Kate Humble's Farm in Monmouth. One particularly special workshop, involving making head crowns from re-cycled materials evolved into traveling to music festivals around Wales with our stall, 'The Pixie's Wardrobe', where we sold wearables and provided workshops.
For the past 6 years, I have had the absolute pleasure of helping run a small shop in Caerleon based in Ffwrwm Arts & Crafts Centre, with a fantastic group of people, selling fair trade gifts, handcrafted items and art. It provides an opportunity for me to meet the public and talk about my work.
It is safe to say, I can't seem to pin my work down to one particular style or medium, but after many years of trying I now go with my gut and where my passion for art takes me.
My inspiration comes from textiles, patterns and materials, recreating the beauty of nature, which seems to be a common theme among artists I admire, particularly those of the Arts & Crafts and Pre-Raphaelite movements.
