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S t o r y
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Education & career
Some form of art has been with me as far as I can remember and was my foremost expression as a child. At 16 I was accepted onto a design course at the Birmingham Institute of Art and Design, progressing on to a degree in Visual Communication. I've been a graphic designer for almost 25 years and freelance most of that, though truthfully, I never wanted to spend my career at the computer. Creativity and self-expression has always been there for me to help me out of darker spots and guided me towards a sense of inner peace and joy
Creative exploration
I travelled the long route through the arts to get to painting itself. It began by rediscovering my love of creative writing in 2009 and a few years later deciding I wanted to learn to play the drums. From there I happened upon a series of ceramics courses at MAC Birmingham which proved a turning point in hands-on expression and control – literally, via wheelwork. For too many years I had been preoccupied with how things should look and my attempts with drawing and painting been frustrating, short-lived events. In many ways I was scared to try again, but something happened in spring 2019 to entice me into an arts shop and changed all that. I bought a pack of inks and watercolour paper and spent weeks surprising myself by consistently painting, practising observational skills until I ventured to try something new. The works on this website are the result of one random thought: "I wonder what will happen if I try drawing whilst meditating?" Through the method I found – using paint, rhythm and meditation, initially blindfold – I realised I could tackle lifetime blocks of perfectionism, and my recurring tendency to focus on acute detail rather than the process of painting itself. I found that 'spirit painting', as I termed it, allowed me to be open to surprise and accepting what emerges. My ink paintings are a subconscious dive to access feelings, emotions and tap into surrounding and collective energies.
What my abstract work is about...
I like to explore themes and concepts and to play with marks, tools and textures. Any session might be an expression of emotion, energy, colour, or something I've been reading about that peaks my interest. This may be personal, current, historical, spiritual or collective, simply delving into a subject that fascinates me. The work itself provides the visual answers, which is what working with the subconscious is all about. In truth, I enjoy the surprise of the end result and the way a piece seems to decide for itself when it is done, similar to playing a drum rhythm for a period of time: at some point, it naturally fades out and stops, it has nothing more to say.
AffiliationsAIR (Arts In Redditch) 2019, 2020, 2021
LSA (Leamington Studio Artists) Member 2020, 2021 Worcestershire Open Studios Member 2021 Shows & eventsAIR Popup Galleries, Redditch
Kingfisher Centre Popup Gallery, Nov 2019 Bertie Crewe Gallery, Palace Theatre, Redditch, Jan/Feb 2020 Kingfisher Centre Popup Gallery, July 2021 Art in the Park Festival (with LSA) Art in the Park Festival 2020 *Event cancelled* Art in the Park Festival 2021 MAC Birmingham Summer Arts Markets 2020 *Events cancelled* Christmas Arts Markets 2021 |
