For years I have been taking walks around Cobtree Manor Park near Maidstone, Kent. This beautiful arboretum used to be the site of Maidstone Zoo many years ago, with the Elephant House being one of the only remaining structures. Jason Arms, the new proprietor, is...
Portraits
This has been exciting! For as long as I can remember, I have loved drawing portraits. Even as a child I was able to draw and shade with a level of accuracy that pleased me. However, in all my years as an artist and teacher, I never painted a portrait with oils. ...
Home Education Project & Lesson Plans
Bringing Visual Arts in to your Home Ed Life When May 2023 Categories Textiles Art As you may know, I was a teacher for over ten years, before deciding to quit the profession for a more holistic life. I spent a year working as an Educational Content Creator for...
Nature in a Cup
Did you know that there are around 4 million species of fungi? That’s 600 times more fungi than mammals! There are endless possibilities for how you could interpret and celebrate their weirdness in your own way. I feel that it is not a subject which has been truly explored by many, which makes it an even more attractive prospect.
Birds
Who doesn't love birds? They're so fragile and vulnerable, yet so strong and resilient. Oh, and they're beautiful too, which is the cherry on the top!WhenCategories As we start to move through winter and desperately long for Spring to appear, the birds seem to come...
Oil Paints and Buttercream…
It has been at least 1o years since I painted anything other than a wall in my house. But for some reason, that is changing and suddenly I have walked in to a new world of colour, texture, discepline and mess!WhenCategoriesI needed a fresh approach to my work and was...
The Link Between Art and Depression
I sometimes wonder if artists are more sensitive than other professionals, so suffer more from depression and related illness than they do? Or… is it that everyone struggles, but artists have a creative outlet for their depression, which is what makes it more visible to others?
Resilience Series
You may remember a while back, I created a print of an Aloe Vera and titled it ‘resilience’. This has been a subject which I keep revisiting. In fact, if I take a look back over all my recent artworks they are all reflective of resilience.
Fun with Fungi
Did you know that there are around 4 million species of fungi? That’s 600 times more fungi than mammals! There are endless possibilities for how you could interpret and celebrate their weirdness in your own way. I feel that it is not a subject which has been truly explored by many, which makes it an even more attractive prospect.