About Me
For as long as I can remember I have been fascinated by colour, nature and patterns. Like a little magpie, I loved all things sparkly and bright! I remember our holidays to India visiting family as a child, my suitcases home were jam-packed with all the bangles, bindis, sequinned fabrics and cushion covers not to mention the camera roll filled with images. It was hard not come away inspired by the bold colours, the rich heritage and stunning landscapes of India.
My paintings and artwork reflect these early influences and those that know me know about my love of colour, which is intrinsic to my art style. When painting, I love to experiment with different shades and tones to create exciting colour palettes. I am also a messy painter…it gets everywhere- in my hair, on my face, I love exploring happy accidents, spills and marks in the paint. They help develop depth and texture to my abstract botanical inspired art. The best thing about painting is I am constantly learning, pushing boundaries and adapting my techniques.
After falling in love with Textiles at secondary school I completed an Art and Design Foundation course at Central Saint Martins and then went on to study Textile Crafts at The University of Huddersfield. During this period, I gained a deep appreciation of using the new projects we were set, to research and obtain a better understanding of topics I wanted to learn more about. One of my favourite parts was creating the mood boards with all my ideas and inspirations and then translating them into exploratory sketches.
After university I sought what I thought might be a more meaningful path and qualified to teach in primary schools. It was during this time that life got busy and raising children became the priority. Although I loved teaching, I missed having a creative outlet and yearned to really put my skills to use. So finally after lockdown with a dog, an untrained puppy, a 15 month old and 2 children requiring home schooling, I picked up a paintbrush to save my sanity- and I haven’t put it down since!
I now live in Darlington with my husband, 3 children and 2 (mostly trained) dogs. We love adventures in the outdoors, exploring arboretums and finding sea glass treasures at the beaches.
Most days I can be found painting in my spare room studio creating all sorts of jewellery, home decor and of course the most colourtastic paintings and even murals!
You are welcome to follow me on either Facebook or Instagram where I post regular updates of what I am up to. I’d love for you to have a browse, ask questions or send me an email.
If there’s a special commission piece you’d like, I am more than happy to help and create something beautiful to adorn your walls. I’d love to hear from you!
Thank you so much for reading,
Kiri