I had quite an idyllic childhood, being born in a village on Exmoor, surrounded by woodland moorland and coastline. As a child there was lots to explore. Brought up within a family of animal lovers, there were numerous pets and rescues to care for and nurture, so I was never short of a companion!
My creative journey, and enthusiasm for working with fabric and thread, started early on in my teens when I was introduced to a variety of hand embroidery techniques. Combined with my love of drawing and painting, I soon discovered that stitching, or mark making with thread, allowed me to build exciting textured surfaces.
From a young age I always loved makings things with my hands – sewing; knitting; painting; drawing. Whatever else my school reports said, they always mentioned I was good at ‘handwork’. But life intervenes and during my twenties my handwork lapsed into non-existence as I back-packed my way around the world, intent on adventure.
I am interested in how we look at the world and how we bestow meaning on objects. There is a history to the medium of ceramics which is linked to our industrial heritage and domestic lives. There is an element of the souvenir to my work – not just of a place, but of a time.
I have always made things, ever since I was very young, but have worked professionally as a maker since 1981. I trained as a silversmith and jeweller at Sheffield School of Art, graduating in 1978. I collected old leather cases when at college and used them as props for my degree show. The tutors hated it.
It is a truism that craftsmen and women like making things- it unites us in The Sussex Guild, whatever materials we use. We might have started in many ways- playing with pencil and paper, stitching, getting our hands muddy, or whittling sticks. Some of us might have been persuaded we had a talent for art, others simply liked to do a job as well as we possibly could.
I think there are few who could deny that stone, with all its varieties of form and colour, is a beautiful material. It is what attracted me to working with stone in the first place. Equally important to me though, is the knowledge that it is such an ancient material which seems to transcend time itself. … Read more
It’s a common recurring question in life, and one that I still find a little tricky to answer in a straightforward way. “So what do you do?” “I’m a jeweller” “Oh, what kind of jewellery do you make?” “Mmmh, well it’s very illustrative…” And it’s at this point that, these days, I usually reach for my … Read more
I have always made things. When young, guns to play with from wood, bags from fabric and leather, crude sandals from rope, models from card and found materials, knitted jumpers. I even made a tent out of an old sheet when I was 11 or 12 using mum’s old treadle sewing machine. This was my first … Read more
I have been chosen as one of 8 finalists in the ‘International Artist’ magazine competition titled ‘Seascapes, Lakes and Rivers’. My batik painting – ‘Reflections of a Tree’ was the work selected and was featured in the Feb/March 2022 issue of ‘International Magazine’. I have a page featuring my inspiration, design strategy and also my batik working process. I feel … Read more
