I'm a Pastel Landscape Artist based in Ashdown Forest (between East Grinstead and Uckfield) in East Sussex. I specialise in views of Ashdown Forest and the wider Sussex countryside and have been producing art and picture framing, for the last 20 years.
Despite my Yorkshire roots (and occasional Northern outbursts), I have now lived in Nutley in the picturesque Ashdown Forest for the last 27 years – still not quite a local!
Ashdown Forest has always been special to me and I strongly suspect I would not have been an artist at all if it wasn’t for the inspiring subject matter right on my doorstep. Even on the gloomiest of days, there is artistic treasure out there waiting to be discovered.
Art is a pursuit I never expected to follow. I had previously trained as a bilingual secretary and worked in the power, marine and construction industries.
It all began on a February day in 1991 with an impulse buy of equipment and stock from a retiring picture framer. In search of customers, I joined a local art class run by Royal Academy - trained tutor, Geoffrey Colbourne. I soon realised there was a market for my work…
The next few years saw the business developing. Customer numbers increased and links were formed with the National Trust at Standen where I staged solo exhibitions and tutored day workshops. My range of limited edition prints and cards grew and I invested in the equipment to produce my own giclee images. I became interested in both the conservation and tourism side of Ashdown Forest and its villages, working with Elite Hotels (Ashdown Park), High Weald AONB Unit and local tourist attractions.
I joined the Ashdown Forest Tourism Association (AFTA) and Tourism South East. Being filmed for ITV's "Tales from the Country" with Selina Scott was exciting and I have also appeared on various public information films. I am reliably informed that my work has found its way to all corners of the globe and at last count I have sold over five hundred original paintings and several thousand prints.
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