Meet the artist - Why I paint

Flowers don't care where they grow!

Why do I paint? To express my love for what I see: the sway of grasses, the blaze of flowers, the dance of light on leaves. Painting is my way of advocating for the beauty of nature - a love letter to our natural world and the wildlife that calls it home.

I’m also a gardener at heart. Not the “perfect stripes on the lawn” kind, but the “let’s create a buffet for the bees and a five-star hotel for the birds” kind. There’s something magical about watching a blackbird feast on fallen apples or spotting a ladybird hitching a ride on a daisy. It’s all part of the bigger picture I try to celebrate in my work.

But before painting took centre stage, photography played a leading role in my life. For years, I was that person crawling out of bed at 3 or 4 in the morning (yes, willingly!) to catch the golden hour in a garden. There’s nothing quite like those first rays of light - pure magic. And, of course, I’d be back home in time for breakfast, slightly disheveled but utterly inspired.

Painting, though, has always been a lifelong love. As a child, I wasn’t exactly enthralled by school lessons unless they involved a paintbrush, a ball, or a good excuse to run around. I loved to run and swim - I might’ve been an athlete if only I didn’t adore art quite so much. My parents, however, saw painting as a hobby (sound familiar?). So, like many of us creative types, I dutifully got a “real” job in business.
I won’t lie - it wasn’t all bad. I worked with great people, learned a lot, and even ended up as a magazine publisher. My last hurrah in publishing was at Elle Decoration, which was as fabulous as it sounds. But eventually, I swapped the boardroom for the garden path and took a leap of faith into freelance garden photography.

That leap led me to where I am today. Over the past 25 years, I’ve woven together my love of painting, photography, and nature. Now, I get to share everything I’ve learned with others, whether it’s through workshops, books, or conversations about the power of creativity.

So, why do I paint? Because it connects me to what I love most - the natural world, its beauty, and its ability to ground us in the here and now. And if, along the way, I can inspire others to pick up a brush or stop to notice the light filtering through the trees, then that’s the cherry on top. 😊