Works on Paper 7 at Blue Shop Gallery

I’m delighted to have four of my original ink drawings included in Blue Shop Gallery’s Works on Paper 7. Ocki, owner of Blue Shop Gallery is committed to helping artists grow by keeping open calls free to enter. I entered the Works on Paper open call earlier this year (my second time applying) and was absolutely astounded to receive an email saying that my work had been accepted.

It’s a real privilege to have my work alongside artists who I admire greatly, including Orla Kane, Camilla Skye, Catrin Llwyd, Tom Scotcher, Louise Pettifer and Toby Wills-Hart (among many many others).

“Walking in forests and being surrounded by trees has always been a contradictory experience for me, I crave the stillness of the woods and the quiet of nature and yet an expansive forest environment can also feel quite foreboding, as if something could be lurking out of sight. In my drawings I'm seeking to represent woodland landscapes, my particular focus is on the light and dark, texture and detail. How woodlands are magical, beautiful, isolating and lonely places all at once. I utilise a process of layering ink and water, allowing the ink to create marks and textures which become integral to the work. I scrub away at the drawing and then use a fine brush to draw in branches, leaves and tiny twigs. The scale is purposefully small, to draw the viewer in and to create an intimacy, the drawings are like little jewels, reminiscent of collectable playing cards, each offering their own woodland impression.”

The Royal Forest of Dean and the Wye Valley

I’ve spoken about the Forest of Dean before, it’s a place that has captured my heart so vividly and inspired so many of my drawings that I find it’s quite often in my thoughts. This November I was able to take a last minute trip to the Forest of Dean with my little family, a Monday to Friday break staying in a cabin on the very site that my parents used to take me to on weekend caravan holidays.

As is always the case whether it be a whistle stop day trip or a longer stay I inevitably take hundreds of photographs, the golden hues of the forest in autumn sing to me like silver does to a magpie. The smell of coal smoke is intoxicating, the familiarity of the woodland trails feels comforting, despite the labyrinthine pathways it feels impossible to get lost in certain places, the route is well worn in my memory.

We started the holiday with a trip to Puzzlewood, somewhere that I don’t recall from childhood. It’s been on my list of places to see for years but there never seems enough time or schedules don’t align with when we’re in the vicinity. We hotfooted from home in Hampshire to Puzzlewood in time for our 11am arrival slot. My in-laws had arrived in the forest the day before and met us at Puzzlewood. We walked into the ancient wood and were immediately surrounded by mossy green rocks, twisty branches and tree roots, fungi of all shapes and sizes and slippery steps leading to rustic bridges over crevasses. Climbing and descending the steps was a slow and considered affair, I felt a little like Bambi on ice at some points as the slippery damp stone steps meant clinging on to whatever you could to keep your legs from giving way.

It is said that JRR Tolkien visited this very wood and was inspired so much that he used elements from what he’d seen in his fantasy books, I can see perfectly well why. It feels as though suddenly the trees might come to life, so characterful and warped are they. Fairies could easily be hiding in the nooks and crannies between rocks and branches, moss providing a comfortable seat to rest. Magical is a word I often overuse when it comes to woodland but it certainly does suit Puzzlewood. The maze-like paths twist and turn, meander up and down over bridges and by caves until you reach a little gate, signalling the end and a return to the Muggle world (yes, supposedly JK Rowling who grew up close to the Forest of Dean also visited Puzzlewood and was inspired by it when writing The Forbidden Forest in the Harry Potter series).

After a turn chasing my son around the willow maze which reminded me of the final episode of True Detective season one (niche reference) we drove to Cannop ponds and walked around the lakes.

The next day we drove to Symonds Yat Rock in the Wye Valley. My memories of Symonds Yat from childhood are a little warped, kind of strange and dream-like. There are rosy toned photographs of a four or five year old me, sat in a canoe with my older half brother sat behind me on the River Wye, bright pink flowers next to the mooring posts by The Saracens Head. Remembering walking from the rock to the river, being encouraged to take shortcuts down steep muddy banks by my dad which resulted in slipping and being stabbed in the leg by a splintered branch. Feeling like where we parked the car at Symonds Yat Rock and where The Saracens Head were were two completely different places, not related at all, a million miles apart. It’s strange how you can mis-remember a place and how funny thoughts from being young stay with you, now whenever I think of Symonds Yat and whenever I visit it I can’t help but think of those hazy muddled memories. We took a walk to the viewpoint and ate our lunch on the stone steps, we then did the Symonds Yat Rock loop walk which dips down into the valley slightly and then back up again. Once back at the carpark which is actually quite picturesque in the autumn we played in the dried leaves.

On the third day we walked in Nagshead Nature Reserve, just across the road from our cabin. It was a drizzly day, rain in autumn just seems to intensify the colours of the turning leaves. Mist hung in the air slightly giving the forest an atmosphere, mysterious and a little foreboding. We were just about the only people on the trail, worn out from carrying our little one and in awe of the beauty of the golden forest. I always think of Nagshead as being one of the most beautiful parts of the Forest of Dean, the colours seem almost surreal. After our loop walk we met my in-laws for a delicious pub lunch in Alvington.

On our final day we all met at the Sculpture Trail at Beechenhurst Lodge for a walk taking in all 16 of the sculptures, although annoyingly we did manage to overlook one. The Sculpture Trail sits steadfast in my memory. A place of wonder where I can round a corner and come face to face with a tree that I’ve lovingly observed or a landscape of pathways that I’ve painstakingly recreated in pen. It’s the one place that we always revisit whenever we come to the forest.

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Self Isolation Silver Linings

Last Monday I was pinged by the NHS app and told to self isolate, it was annoying timing as my partner was going to be off work for a few days and we were planning on having a few little adventures - since moving home in June we’ve been so busy with unpacking and decorating that we’ve hardly explored our new town together or spent much quality time together as a family.

I took a rapid lateral flow test which came back negative and then after sulking for a bit I decided to turn being housebound into a positive by getting my pens out.

A few weeks ago I was invited to exhibit with Chalk’s Gallery in Lymington in their exhibition Art Alchemy set to take place in September. I agreed to take part but hadn’t had the time to get started on the work to be exhibited, being told to stay at home for 10 days with my partner home to share caring for our toddler was the kick I needed to stop procrastinating.

I decided to make work inspired by landscape in the New Forest as this is where the gallery is based. I scrolled through the hundreds of photographs I have from day trips over the years and settled on some beautiful woodland scenes. I made two detailed drawings in the style of my woodland studies series, focusing on the sparkling dappled light and tiny natural details.

I’m out of isolation now and my partner is back to work so the duty of caring for our little boy is solely mine again, which means drawing is relegated to an hour at nap time if I’m lucky and evenings once he’s gone to bed. I will make two more pieces to be displayed at the gallery alongside the two ‘Brockenhurst’ drawings.

Brockenhurst I, 21cm x 14.9cm, pen on paper

Brockenhurst II, 21cm x 14.9cm, pen on paper

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