I first trained at the Byam Shaw School of art and Camberwell School of Arts & Crafts, graduating in 1973. I began working first as a freelance book illustrator and designer, and then as a curator for Editions Alecto, fine art print publishers.
After visiting Pompeii at 18 and seeing the murals that had been excavated I was inspired to follow a career in mural painting.
In 1978 I joined the firm of Jim Smart Ltd to do an apprenticeship learning the decorative paint finishes such as wood, marble and lapis lazuli and most importantly how to paint a wall. My interest grew towards Trompe L’œil after visiting the Italian Palazzos in the Veneto and during the 80’s and 90’s worked by commission painting what I termed architectural Trompe L’œil. These were carried out in private houses, offices, public buildings and cruise ships in Europe and USA. This work culminated in a commission to paint the Assumption on the domed ceiling at Lulworth Castle Chapel in Dorset in 1988, the first free standing Catholic church to be built after the Counter Reformation in 1786.
In 2000 after many years in the apprenticeship of painting Trompe L’œil, the lure of freedom from this genre was initiated by a journey to Patagonia to see and experience the wilderness. The constraints of painting the inanimate soon gave way to the animate, and it is predominately the tree, so like the torso of the human body, which has helped me on the path to finding a visual language to express human emotions.
Commissions Include:
Chase Farm NHS Hospital, London
The CAMHS Trust, NHS, Andover
Lulworth Castle Chapel, Dorset
Bridgewater House, London
P&O’s Flag ship The Oriana
Derngate Theatre Bar, Northampton
Exhibitions
Chelsea Arts Club 2008
54 The Gallery, London 2007
Presteigne Annual Art Show 2004
Carlyle Gallery, London 2003
Piers Feetham Gallery, London 2003
The Georgian Group, London 1996
Publications:
Faith in the Pursuit of Beauty: ‘An Artist’s Story: Painting the Assumption at Lulworth Castle Chapel’ 2002
Articles:
Church Building Magazine: ‘St Mary’s Lulworth Chapel’ 2002
Perspectives Magazine: ‘Under Sarah’s Spell’ Oct 1996
The World of Interiors: ‘Writer’s Muse’ Oct 1984
Lectures:
Art Remarks: ‘The Imagining Eye’ 2002
‘An Artist’s Story’ 2002 & 2007