Following almost a decade of caring for my elderly parents, academic editorial work, and therapeutic writing, I find myself returning to what excites me artistically.  Over the past twenty-five years my practice has evolved through sculpture, portraiture, therapeutic arts, painting en plein air and writing. Although the media have changed, a consistent thread has remained: an exploration of identity, belonging, transformation and the way images can help us re-imagine ourselves and our place in the world.

A Developing Thread ... The Thirteenth Dream

My current interest has gradually moved towards a creative dialogue with historical art, particularly nineteenth-century figurative painting.  Through drawing, painting and research I have become interested in how inherited cultural narratives continue to shape contemporary understandings of identity, gender, belonging and selfhood.

Recent exploratory studies have focused on learning basic historical painting techniques, the use of symbolism and figurative storytelling, and the relationship between beauty and meaning. These investigations have opened new questions within my practice and revealed possibilities for a significant period of artistic development.  

Why Now?

Following the completion of major research, publication and professional leadership roles, I have reached a point where my artistic practice is becoming the primary focus of my professional life.

I am increasingly drawn towards ambitious, research-informed painting that bring together the different strands of my career as artist, researcher, writer and therapist.

A period of professional development, with input from specialist mentors, will provide the time and support needed to deepen my technical oil painting skills and expand my critical understanding, and enable me to create ambitious exhibition-scale work.

This development would not only benefit my own practice, but also contribute to wider conversations around beauty, identity, belonging and the transformative role of art within contemporary culture.  It would also put my work in front of new audiences and open a dialogue between victorian imagery and contemporary ethics.

The long term ambition is achieve the skills that will enable me to develop a significant body of work for a touring exhibition, that brings together my interest in the Pre-Raphaelite imagery, aesthetics, self-identity, belonging and the transformative potential of art, and engage in conversation with famous historical works.