A Door Into The Unknown

I am always looking for new ways to express myself through my art and recently I’ve been working on developing a new portfolio of mixed media artworks. It all started with a series of small, experimental collages that followed on from my previous landscape work where I timidly began to add more textural elements.

I knew that I wanted to explore something new, something that would stimulate my imagination, so I began to focus on monochrome paintings which, having been very much addicted to colour for many years, was rather like opening another door into the unknown. Did I know what I was after then? Did I have a bigger picture of what I wanted to do? I don’t think so, but by then I knew there was no going back. I don’t think you can ever truly return once you start down the infinite possibilities of new creative paths.

I studied textiles for 5 years at art college, before moving onto painting for another 5 years at university, and my first true artistic love was for weaving, so I decided to weave something. It was only something small but it was about feeling this “thread” of a new direction. The first threads were easy and exciting! What was happening under my fingers and the effect of painstaking work, although small in size, delighted me and the once familiar sensation of the woven textures at my fingertips began to reawaken something in me that had lain dormant for many years.

The next day brought the question of what now? What’s next? I must have a plan of action. I have been working on my professional portfolio for many years and have worked hard to create and maintain motivating and productive relationships with the galleries I work with. I can’t let these slip away. After all, it’s not about throwing everything away and starting from scratch, it’s about combining all these things together, all the various facets of myself, the journeys my life has taken me on and my interests and passions.

In the meantime, I was tidying the studio but as always, I never really got very far… there’s always something more interesting than cleaning that catches my attention. I started collecting pieces of old pictures, paints scraped off palettes, forgotten graphics and putting them together into little works of abstraction. They’re so interesting to me as new images are created, but it was only after a few days that I saw what the actually are. These are my fabric designs for my weaving!! It’s amazing how inspiration can come from the most unexpected places. I can’t wait to see where this new portfolio of mixed media artworks will take me next.

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