Artist Statement
As a painter and photographer, I am fascinated by the visual language of Abstract Art and enjoy exploring the structural elements that are part of this. I tend to focus on the arrangement of line, and, acting as my starting point, it is this framework that informs my considerations as I plan and explore the possibilities of a piece; while colour, tone and the evolving space contribute to my deliberations as I proceed.
I am also aware, though, of the more personal and spontaneous aspects in my work. The pragmatic elements of stress and quality of line, for instance, and the scruffy moments or indications of discarded ideas. I enjoy the ambiguities that arise, or incongruities and points that make one look further, and am conscious how they work with the planned and contribute to the whole. But I am mindful too of how they evoke a sense of the interplay between my subjective instinct and the more measured use of the compositional tools available to all and how both strands are involved in the realisation of a piece.
Background Context
My interest in the visual language of abstract art reflects my interest with language and communication in a wider sense. Having worked as a Paediatric Speech and Language Therapist for many years, I gradually switched the balance of my life and placed art at the centre. Completing a Fine Art Degree in 2012 and a Masters in 2019, I am currently part way through a PhD. I have a studio at 44AD artspace in the centre of Bath and am involved in Fringe arts Bath - co-ordinating and curating the annual Bath Open Art Prize which takes place every autumn and attracts entries from around the world.