I love finding all the pastel colours in the petals of ‘white’ flowers. I backlit the flowers to make them glow and started with a panel coloured with a midtone grey/blue.

I did this painting whilst isolating with Coronavirus, its about as bonkers as I felt after 9 days in isolation but I LOVE IT !!

I can’t decide whether ‘Matcha’s’ expression is one of tolerance or pleasure but they certainly make a very cute pair!

Brodies owner was determined to get me a good shot to work from, it makes such a big difference to work from a clear, well lit photograph. He finally cracked it with this shot!

Sometimes there are one or two key brushstrokes in a painting that make it really unique…I feel they connect the viewer to me- the artist, as you can literally feel how they were created and imagine yourself with my brush in your hand..

This commission was from a mum to her daughter who was missing her pup whilst away at boarding school…what a special gift.

It’s rare that I work rectangular but Kate’s was such a beautiful pose that it suited her to be tall and slim! The parquet floor was a gift I loved drawing and painting all the diagonals…i’ve got a thing about herringbone…I enjoyed integrating the colours in her fur with those on the floor.

We got this shot during a photoshoot in Jephson Gardens back in the summer (hence the panting tongues!)…Bronte was determined not to look into the camera in any of the photos but this one where their profile is the same angle works perfectly for a double portrait.

It may be December but its a balmy 12 degrees here! This spot is a short walk from my house and the local sledging area when it snows. I cycled up and got to whizz down the muddy bank into the middle of my view at the end!

Plein Air painting is a constant conversation between the landscape and your brush.  To interpret what you see and translate it onto the page in a way that keeps the essence of the landscape whilst satisfying your style.  You’ve got to be prepared to ‘loose it’ to make it better though!

Dahlias, Lilies, Roses. In loving Memory of my father-in-law Malcolm.

Dahlias, 8” x 8” oil on board, painted from life.

The autumn light was really making the gardens come to life the other day. I’ve never been drawn to paint buildings til recently but in changing light they are far from static ...sounds weird but they have character and features just like pets or flowers do...and hidden movement from the people within!

Newbold Terrace from Archery Lawn, Jephson Gardens. I’ve eyed this building before but it had never looked so dramatic with the autumn light hitting it low, the moody blue sky behind and the 2 yellow trees still just hanging onto their leaves.

Fellow artist @Ednashart and I are teaming up to host regular Plein Air Meet Ups in and around Leamington Spa. Here we are ready to start painting ‘The Bandstand’ next to ‘The Pumprooms’

2 ladies spotted each other across the train tracks- and a full blown screaming match ensued. When I saw these 2 vivid trees screaming for attention across the river from each other it was those ladies that I remembered!

I’ve had 2 attempts at this tree now!  It’s not often I work on something for more than 2 sessions but it was quite refreshing to be working on canvas and able to evolve the work and think about my next move while one layer dried. 

I am told that when I was very little I had a knitted dog toy...an old lady bent down to me in my pushchair and said: “Is that your spotty dog”?  “NO, I replied, IT’S DALMATION !”

Flowers growing in the garden of our local pub...many a happy hour spent having a ‘tea-timer’ in there!! The photo at the bottom shows the colours on my palette, the premixed colours for each element and the brushes used.

I just had to paint one of the 25 amazing Agapanthus that grew in my garden this year! And to celebrate their magnificence I had to buy (yet another) glass jug!