I create immersive, soul-fueled and joyful paintings rooted in the connection I feel to my authentic self through nature.
My paintings start in the visceral with pure emotion laid out on canvas. I often use my hands which allows me to leave traces of my own vulnerability and energy within the work. As I release any tension and begin to play with colour there is a transformation into joy. The paintings I build up in several layers, each one containing the memories of the marks before.
Every mark, every stroke, is an act of letting go, of accepting the present moment and embracing authenticity. This raw expression I then contain within natural forms or transform into imagined landscapes. Sometimes a favourite tree, the feeling of taking a deep breath on a windy beach or the memory of a place where I feel whole.
What I believe we need in life shines through my art: colour, connection, joy, freedom and energy.
Bio
My professional life started as a teacher, working in the UK, Thailand and Indonesia. Disillusioned with a system that didn’t allow for individual expression and seeing a lot of young people in need of support I retrained as a psychotherapist. Part of training involved having extensive therapy myself and I realised how much I was missing art.
As a kid I was always drawing and creating, then I stopped due to trauma and the resulting anxiety. Painting was an important part of my healing journey, and a return to living authentically had to mean picking up paintbrushes again.
I painted 100 paintings in 100 days during the pandemic to hone in on what I wanted to create and it became clear that nature, abstraction, colour and emotional resonance were important for me.
Now my painting practice is symbiotic with my work as a therapist. The intensity of emotion and stories I hold with clients allow for a depth in my art and the catharsis I experience painting allows me to be more present with my clients. I can’t imagine doing one without the other.
I currently live in Derbyshire with my husband, young daughter and an overly affectionate cat.
Events and Exhibitions
-2025-
20 Jan- 1 Feb Solo exhibition: Compassionate Canvas, Banks Mill Studios
Ongoing exhibition, Catharsis Arts Therapy
-2024-
Open Studios, Banks Mill
Secret Postcard Show, The Old Lock Up Gallery
Exhibition: Into the Trees, Catharsis Arts Therapy
Melbourne Open Art Fair
-2022-
University of Derby Art Society Showcase, Banks Mill Studios