Beyond the Canvas

My Story

I grew up in Nottingham, England, and creativity has been a constant in my life for as long as I can remember. My creative journey has taken me through fashion, illustration, design, textiles and painting. I have a BA in Fashion Textile Design and a Diploma in Interior Design, and over the years I’ve worked as a knitwear and costume designer, commercial illustrator, mural artist and proposal specialist for a high-end furniture design company. I’ve also run an artists’ cooperative. Although my career has taken many different directions, painting has always been the thread that brings me back to myself.

Around 2011, I began focusing primarily on abstract painting, and I’ve been following that path ever since. I’ve never felt the need to settle into one particular style. I’m much more interested in staying curious, experimenting and seeing where the work takes me. 

Two Places, Endless Inspiration

I now divide my time between Ontario and Florida, and both places continue to influence my work through their very different landscapes, seasons and light. After more than fifteen years of painting, I’m still experimenting, still changing my mind, and still excited by that moment when a painting suddenly feels alive.

My Process

Colour is at the heart of my work. I love unexpected combinations, bold contrasts, quiet tones beside bright ones, and the surprises that happen when translucent and opaque layers meet. Nature is a constant source of inspiration—flowers, water, sky, trees, rocks and changing light—but I’m less interested in recreating what I see than in capturing the feeling it gives me.

My process is intuitive and playful. I work with layers of paint, collage, stencils, graphite, scribbles, drips and Posca pens. Words and loose, childlike lettering have also started appearing in my newer work. I often begin a painting without knowing where it will end, and some of my favourite moments happen when I stop trying to control the outcome.

I don’t think you need to understand a painting to connect with it. I want my work to bring something into a room—energy, joy, calm, curiosity, or simply a moment to pause.

A little intuition, a lot of colour, a healthy dose of let's see what happens