I would describe myself as an abstract artist and a messy, creative human. My journey has been full of passion, emotion and a sprinkle of self belief. I feel like the journey has not yet been completed, it’s still going!

As a young girl viewing Monet’s garden paintings for the first time, I really felt the colours of nature and was intrigued by the loose brushwork, the vivid colours and the emphasis and play on light. Georgia O’Keeffe’s abstract compositions for flowers also made me view nature in a different way, rather than the lifelike still life drawings that were mostly imposed on me growing up. I also focused heavily on the female body at the beginning of my painting journey, heavily influenced by Jenny Saville and Lucien Freud. Their colour palettes are warm and their brush strokes taught me that it’s OK to not make the ‘perfect’ painting. Tracey Emin also taught me the power of meaning behind artwork.

The forest is my biggest inspiration and always will be; a place that holds so many different ecosystems; a unique and diverse environment that stimulates my imagination and evokes a range of emotions for me. If I feel stressed, the forest provides me with serenity and peace, which helps me reset before I come back home or to the studio. Lakes also seem to be a big part of my paintings. Blue would never be my first choice of colour but the calmness and tranquillity of it is so soothing.

Pink and green are complementary colours on the colour wheel, meaning that they balance and enhance each other. This combination will forever be a part of my work I think, and it makes me think of Spring the most as I feel they evoke a fish and lively mood, whilst also being relaxing for the viewer.

I recently moved to Epping forest, where my parents live, I thought I would be super emotional leaving my North London life behind, but I haven’t looked back since. It’s a new chapter, and one that is very much nature filled. I now have more space to paint, I can walk to the forest whenever I like and explore new places. Knowing that I am a stone’s throw away from 19 kilometres length of woodland to explore gives me an immediate sense of calm.

When I am in the best mood for painting tends to be after a dog walk to the forest and when the sun is out and shining. The natural light in my studio in the morning is so beautiful, it’s almost impossible not to sit down and pick a paintbrush up.

Nature has subtle ways of encouraging you to be creative like this I believe. To be honest, even when it is pouring down with rain it is also a cosy time to sit and paint!

"The natural world has taught me patience, in every disaster or mistake there will be growth"
The natural world has taught me patience, in every disaster or mistake there will be growth, the importance of sustainability and care and the beauty that there is in almost every corner of life.

The natural world is full of breathtaking landsca...

Read the whole post...