When did you learn to paint?
I often get asked this question and I guess the easy answer would be ‘when I was little’ or ‘at college’, but really, it’s a constant process.
I have always loved art and being creative. As a child I was always drawing, painting, sewing or making things, influenced by my mum and grandpa.
At school and college the art departments were fantastic and I was supported by great teachers. We used every medium and technique you can think of, from oil pastels and acrylics to weaving and screen printing. By practicing with all these different techniques and mediums I was able to constantly learn, improve and find my favourites.
Back then my favourite was still life using mixed media.
At college, our first piece of homework was to draw a corn on the cob in charcoal and chalk and give it a background. For the background I used the corn as a paint roller with white acrylic on black paper, creating little corn shaped spots. Then I made a miniature stencil of the corn outline, cutting it out multiple times with a craft knife, creating little windows that you could see the painted background through. Finally I placed my corn drawing over the top. From then on I was always known as the one who spent the most time on their art homework!
Now, my favourite is anything related to natural history, particularly marine life, using watercolour, graphite pencil and digital drawing. When I’m not painting or drawing on paper, you’ll find me knitting or experimenting with Procreate. I believe, and I know many artists agree with me, that by constantly being creative in a variety of ways, we can continuously learn and improve.
Enjoyed this post? Read about why I paint natural history here.
