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I am a mixed media artist based in Cornwall with a lifelong passion for painting. I draw my inspiration from the beauty of nature in all its glorious, myriad forms, that I am lucky enough to have on my door step in this beautiful county.
I am fascinated by rugged textures, by seabirds, by flora and fauna, by the play of light especially on the water, by feathers and wings, by stones, fish and animals. I believe the natural world can be so many things to so many people, it can invigorate and inspire, yet at the same time it can calm the mind and provide peace and solace. I see Nature as a gift, one that should be shared by everyone and I hope that through my work, I can even in a small way, touch upon its beauty and bring to life a little bit of its magic My work is a two-tiered process. My backgrounds are highly textural and painted intuitively often taking on a life of their own. I never really know how each new work will turn out, but that just adds to the creative journey. I start by roughly applying plaster to board, and leaving it to dry, then I sand it just smooth enough in places to accommodate the image. I then sketch directly onto the plastered board and deep etch the lines of the image to give it a more solid, defined, form amongst the chaos of the texture. I then build up layers of paint one upon another, wiping much of it off as I go along. I love the way the rough plaster catches the paint in some places but glances off the smoother areas, I often finish with a layer of metallic bronze, gold or mother of pearl. I tend to go on working the paint until I am left with a background that mimics the patinas and light of the natural world. This then becomes the perfect backdrop for simpler subject matters, often taking the form of birds, fish, stones, flowers or feathers. The end result creating a marked and I hope interesting contrast to the rugged background.
