Journal

I’m obsessed with Tresco and fortunately I’ve had the wonderful opportunity to visit for many years thanks to the artist’s residency with Gallery Tresco. I’ve just returned from spending 5 days there with my son. We would have had longer but the fog scuppered a couple of days travel which tends to be a common occurrence during the colder months. This year we stayed in Reading Room Cottage, a few minutes amble from the pub, shop and pool.
Our days were spent walking around the island, sketching, and enjoying a dip in one of the indoor swimming pools. I relish the simplicity of our quiet visits to Tresco as I’m used to living in the middle of a town with bustle.

Every day I collected different wild flowers to draw and use as starting points for a new collection of originals for the gallery. I’m currently really enjoying painting flowers so I thoughts I’d continue with this thread for a while longer.

p.s I’ve used my non dominant hand for the script on my sketches and I’m loving the effect!

I spent many years working at home either in my bedroom, kitchen or sitting room. And although I adapted well I often thought it would be amazing to have a proper studio- an airy and bright, white room. For the past few years I’ve working in a small room at home which was originally my son’s bedroom but he’s now in the attic enjoying views of St Michaels Mount…. when he bothers to open the blind. Last year the opportunity came up to rent a space above a gallery just down the road from my home. I’ve been there now for almost year and swing between my bijou space at home and my studio down the road. It feels very luxurious to have the 2 options. I achieve more when I’m down the road plus I have the added joy of making coffee with Coffee Mate which has elevated elevenses.

There’s something so fresh and sophisticated about a simple blue and white palette. Looking through my work it’s a recurring theme for both prints and paintings. For me it’s reminiscent of the South of France, a place which frequently informs my work having visited many years ago on a family holiday. The feel of it has never left me.

Here’s a selection, some of which are available from my online shop

I’ve been visiting Tresco for around 15 years, thanks to the wonderful residency which is offered to the artists at Gallery Tresco. Due to the pandemic I’ve skipped the last 2 years however this year myself and my son were thrilled to finally return to the island.

We took the helicopter from Penzance, a mere 15 minute journey. I can’t say I relish being in the air but I preferred it to taking the little plane at Lands End.

There’s something so relaxing and calming about Tresco, it feels like a simpler way of life but maybe that’s because we live in a town.

Since returning to Penzance I’ve completed a range of originals based on out stay. They’re now being framed and will be available to purchase from Gallery Tresco mid May.

Two weeks ago I moved in a new studio! I’ve been working in a small room in my house for years, I enjoy it but the space is restricting. Finally I can spread out and work on several paintings at a time. It’s feels like quite a luxury having the 2 spaces to swing between.

It’s a mere 5 minutes walk from the house which means I can easily nip home to check on the dog and have a quick coffee. I’m based above Daisy Laing, a vintage furniture shop and gallery on Chapel Street in Penzance.

My plan is to fill the space with new work and have an open day! In the meantime do get in touch if you’d like to see my paintings in the flesh. I’m open all year round by appointment for studio/home visits.

A couple of weeks ago the printmaking class I attend reopened. I’m so happy to be back on a Tuesday morning for a couple of hours. I’ve decided to make monoprints based on my paintings. It’s a simple but very satisfying process. I have made monoprints at home using my table top press but the press can be unpredictable and I’m not always in the mood to wrangle and wrestle with it, whereas the big press at Penzance School of Art is a sheer joy to operate and has a docile nature.

I’ll be adding these designs to my online shop this week.

A new theme for me – Fish! And it makes sense as I live only a mile away from Newlyn, a famous fishing port here in Cornwall. I looked at work by Braque and William Scott as a starting point and then made a trip to Newlyn where I bought 2 mackerel to sketch and use in my own work. Here are some of the results:

Phew, what a year we are all going through. Sometimes it’s really hard to find the positives but the sight of spring flowers bursting through the gloom is a good reminder that things will change. The sunshine yellow daffodils and narcissi are a lovely shot of colour, I’ve placed them throughout my house to lift our spirits and of course to paint. They’re another favourite subject. Yellow is such a gorgeous and joyous colour.

I was very drawn to the pink label on this local roadside flower stall.

The one above is available at White Space Art.

Stripes are another recurring theme within my work. I love the direct simplicity of a stripe and how something so uncomplicated can bring added interest to a painting plus it’s also a chance to play around with colour, scale and balance.

I generally combine just two colours. Here are a handful:

Some of these are available from my online shop, so take a look!

Like many artists I have various subjects that I return to in my work and one of them is pears. I love the shape, simplicity and familiarity of them and the fact they are autumnal, English, shapely and homely. Other people like them too as I’ve sold quite a few originals featuring this humble fruit. I’m moving onto figs next, an equally appealing fruit.