Richmond (after the rain)

I painted this with the exhileration of a swift bike ride through a damp Richmond deer park still fresh in my mind.

Malmo, Sunset, Oresund Bridge and Turning Torso

Pete and I are delighted to be moving so close to the sea, and to an area that's thriving in design. I'm determined not to end up like Wallander's dad and just paint seascapes when we are there (I think he probably should have moved his chair around more often...).

The Bears in Our Garden

By popular request, a few photos of those we will leave behind in our move to Sweden...

Babs by Babs

This is my first attempt at self-portrait: it's actually quite hard to capture expression, when looking into one's own eyes.

The strong blue sky, yellow field and pine trees in the background were no doubt inspired subconsciously by our imminent move to Sweden, although we will be located by the coast....

My Philosophy: I keep a green bough...

I was very inspired quite recently when I came across the saying "I keep a green bough in my heart and a singing bird comes to me".

The painting is mixed media (golden acrylics, coloured inks and pastels), and with it I wanted to capture the shimmer and snippets of Spring in full flush.

It felt like the perfect counterpart to a birthday card my graphic designer uncle had once made for me many years ago, which contained the phrase "Wer die Sonne im Herzen traegt, haelt das Leben in der Hand". This translates into "carry sunshine in your heart, hold life in your hand".

Spring has come!

When I was working on getting full mobility into my ankle again, and trying out new directions professionally, I found the saying "Spring will come, blossom tree" very upbeat and encouraging.

I celebrated progress on diverse fronts by dabbling with palette knives and thick oil paints for this painting, which conjured up for me the life-affirming complimentary sentiment of "Spring has come".

The Zen of Pete

I recently attempted my first full-blown, serious portrait, when Pete was recovering from a minor knee operation, so was pretty much a captive subject.

The portrait took a month to complete: much of it spent by me walking around it, hum-ing and ha-ing over how much detail, which colour combinations, and how to convey perspectives. I used oil paints with brushes and palette knives.

To my delight, the portrait made it through to the second round of BP 2009 National Portrait Competition.