A bit about me
As a child I was never happier than when I was drawing - usually horses!
As a teenager I had to make a choice: continue my education and go to art college or leave school to take up a job offer to work in Carnaby Street. If you're old enough to understand that dilemma you'll guess what I chose!
In my 20s I did go to college but it was secretarial college, and my career developed into office management. With multinational companies I travelled the world and during the 1980s I was living in Singapore, running a branch office. The surreal ex-pat life eventually palled so I returned to work in the City of London and then, bored with commuting, became office manager for a suburban firm of financial advisers.
My career gave me little time to pursue my love of drawing until 20 years ago when I bought a set of pastel pencils and rediscovered the pleasure of drawing. My first commissions were horses and dogs from at the yard where I kept my own horse. My husband, David, built me a website and slowly word spread, leading to a steady flow of commission requests. With encouragement from David I left the rat race and concentrated on building up my commission business.
Having not had a formal education in art, I joined many online art communities and societies to discovered a whole new world of pencils and papers. I've attended workshops and classes which have enabled me to experiment and develop my own style. I now work mostly in coloured pencils where very fine detail is required – it is a slower process than pastel artwork but produces some beautiful results. My first portrait of a person - David, actually - was 2006 and although four legged subjects will always be my favourites, many of my commissions are now portraits of people. To find inspiration we've travelled the world seeking willing subjects in traditional attire. For a source of animal subjects we've taken several safaris in Africa. I love drawing cats - of all sizes.
