Portraits

I like to paint people, seeing what makes them happy and how we all deal with any mental health problems we may have. Particularly how we often use textile items to comfort us. I like to explore expressions and the story behind that expression.

This self portrait shows me on a day when I was struggling with the constant rejections you get as an artist. I am lying on a cushion I made my father and wearing a cardigan I knitted for my mother, neither of whom are with me anymore except in these precious textiles.

Peter Smith, my uncle is indeed a mighty man. A former Dean at Columbia University and a man who knows and has met many interesting people, but someone who has suffered with severe mental health issues for many years. I wanted to show the look of sadness in his eyes and the mental suffering he endures whilst showing that he is a strong man who is very proud of his roots and his upbringing. A gentle man with a story to tell.

My daughter, Chloe is a happy, wonderful girl who likes to make everyone she meets happy despite having severe physical disabilities, She can suffer with anxiety but her Bedtime Bear is a constant source of comfort and travels with her always.

This piece is about collecting the memories of a child. It is inspired by the Victorian collecting cabinets and Cabinets of Wonder. Where they would often collect pieces of hair or paintings of a loved ones eye. It is oil on board with hand knitted miniature teddy, in a wooden collecting tray.

I like to walk taking photos of my environment but wherever I go, even when alone, Chloe is always in my mind. I never stop thinking or worrying about her. In this painting her smiling face looms into my thoughts dominating them.

This painting uses a mixture of collage and acrylics to create this image of us during the lockdown of 2020. It is a fish-eye view encapsulating our restricted life at that time. My daughter watching her iPad instead of doing school work and I am watching the tv daily broadcasts from the government whilst clutching a cushion showing the leaders and my lack of confidence in them whilst knowing they are all we have. The conservatory roof has corona virus raining down on it and the garden you can see through the conservatory door is a perfect magazine garden as so many, except us, spent huge amounts of time on their gardens.