I’ve always had two main passions in life; art and animals. From a very young age, both brought me immense joy and made my heart sing. Growing up around animals; both domestic pets and the abundance of wildlife in the garden, taught me so much about their indisputable sentience, unconditional love and the great comfort they bring during difficult times.  I feel blessed to combine these two great passions in my work as an animal artist, working mainly in pastels, and I like to think my love of animals shines through on the canvas.

My love of art led me to follow a formal art education right through from School, College and on to University where I graduated with a 1st Class honours degree in Visual Communication from Northumbria University. After which, I acquired an agent, and moved to London to work as an Illustrator working on children’s books, along side pet portrait commissions. I won several art awards and had the great fortune to exhibit at the Mall Galleries as part of a collective of artists. Choosing the sensible option however, I fell into a ten year magazine publishing career working as a Picture Editor, until a fortuitous redundancy gave me the opportunity to realign with my true passions, and get back to the drawing board.

I now work full time as a professional artist from my studio in Crowborough, lovingly creating highly detailed portraits, using only the finest archival materials to ensure they last a lifetime. Soft pastels are my medium of choice for the vibrancy and convincing softness they permit. Read more about pastels here.