Art Practice

My practice combines art, working with people and the environment. 

I respond to site by searching for available materials. The qualities of the materials entice me; I play and discover how I can change them, what can be made out of them, their origin and any stories or histories they hold. More recently I have been foraging for the fruits of the landscape, e.g. galls, walnuts, cones, berries, and exploring the processes of how these can be used. My life as a mother means my time on my art is regularly interrupted and therefore infrequent, so, my work often remains as ideas or sketches, but sometimes the opportunity arises for these ideas to develop and manifest into pieces of work, I draw, write, make objects and create performances. It is sometimes necessary to use photography and film to capture my work as, like life and nature, it is often fleeting.

Working With People

Sharing my knowledge and research about art and craft and engaging others to make is what I do, whether it be in a gallery or museum, a school, day centre or even an old mining site, delivering inspiring and engaging sessions for children and adults is an important part of my practice. I have 17 years’ experience of working with art and people of all ages and abilities, including with hard-to-reach groups. To add to my repertoire, I trained as a Forest School Leader in 2018 so deliver sessions with children and young people in woodlands. These sessions are tailored to the children’s needs, the curriculum and classroom topics. In addition to learning how to light fires, use tools and build dens my sessions include lots of creativity and art. 

Combining the practice of making art and craft with working outdoors within a woodland setting brings a huge sense of mental well-being, which I believe is crucial to society.

Exhibitions / Key Dates 

• Artist presentation at ‘Evolving the Forest’ conference at Dartington Hall, 2019

• ‘A Quiet Collaboration’ Garden Space at Dartington Hall Gardens, 2018

• Warwickshire Open Studios-pop-up Museum of my grandmother’s collections, 2014.

• Oxford Improvisers’ ‘Cohesion 4’ Festival at Pegasus Theatre, Oxford, 2010

• ‘The Purpose of Drawing’, The University of Plymouth Colleges, 2010

• Resident artist for ‘Build’ at Cornwall College, 2008

• ‘Transition: Curators Edition’ at Newlyn Art Gallery, 2008

• ‘Selected Bibliography’ at Morrab library, Penzance, 2007

• ‘Eek’ at the Old Grammar School, Redruth, 2006

• ‘Wheal Art’ at King Edward Mine, 2006

• RANE (Research Art Nature Environment) at Trebah gardens, 2005-06

• ‘Voicing dissent’ – Artist responses to the war in Iraq, Falmouth Arts Centre, 2004

• The Poetics of Materials, Eden Project, 2004

• MA Contemporary Visual Art at Falmouth, 2002-2004

• BA Fine Art at Reading University, 1993-1997