As a small independent business I rely on social media to promote my work. I largely use Instagram to share my paintings, my workshops, my thoughts, my feelings and everything in between. Like many people I don’t really understand how it works. It can seem very fickle and at times it can make me feel great & others not so much! 

Most days I feel that I have something I want to share so I use this space to do it. I get excited when I start a new painting…so want to share that with others. If I’m struggling with something or had a disappointment I share that too. I try to keep my page real. It’s not a positivity happy clappy page. It’s not a space where you come and expect everything to be perfect. Spoiler Alert: life isn’t perfect! It’s about the roller coaster of life. Nothing I experience is unique to me. I know that much.

I realised recently why I have been reluctant to offer more art workshops. It’s not because I don’t enjoy them…because I do. I get so much pleasure from watching other people discover they can enjoy painting simply for the sake of it. For how it makes them feel. How it has the ability to switch off all the ‘noise’ of daily life and allow them to disappear into an alternative more relaxing place. I’ve also witnessed it change the narrative for some people who believed that they were no good at art. Giving them the confidence to go away and continue their own explorations.

My JOURNEY to becoming an ARTIST has been a long and winding road, with many bumps in the track. BUT I wouldn't change a thing. I LOVE being an artist and I'm living a dream I didn't even know I had.

Below is a letter I wrote to myself. I hope it may inspire someone else & that someone could be you!

Gallerist Jackie Bell invited me to be part of the Summer Show at her gallery in Bungay, Suffolk and I was absolutely delighted. I was really looking forward to it and knew it would be something to focus on after my solo exhibition. It was going to be a completely different experience as my work would be displayed alongside 10 other artists.

In June 2024 I hosted a solo art exhibition at The Craft House In Woodbridge, Suffolk. This was an exciting opportunity for me to showcase my latest collection of acrylic paintings. I called the exhibition: Colour Me Happy. My use of bold, bright colours is one of the things that most people comment upon and how happy they make them feel. It is definitely the effect they have on me too…hence Colour Me Happy!

Since the beginning of my painting journey I have created collections of art cards based on my acrylic paintings. This has brought me untold joy as I have had a life-long love of sending & receiving cards. Therefore to have my own art card collections has been amazing. I get really excited when I have a new collection out…some might say a little too over-excited!

NEWSFLASH….WE ARE ALL CREATIVE!!!

I started my monthly art workshops as my way of spreading the love that art had offered to me. It was through experiencing mental health issues in my mid-fifties that I started painting & I found it calming, relaxing & truly liberating. I was able to paint for hours and hours and found my problems disappeared when I was painting, offering me respite from the noises in my head. It was my way of processing my inner and outer landscape.