Biography
Brief history: Born in Abergavenny, Wales, UK in 1950 (Gemini/Tiger)
and lived in Llanvihangel Crucorney, a picturesque village nearby.
Emigrated to Western Australia in 1963.
Travelled Worldwide. Studied Graphic and Fine Art in London and Australia for 7 years
(and also self taught in many areas...including portraiture, photography and digital art).
Lived in Tasmania for 9 years, from 2011-2020.
Returned to Western Australia 2020.
Welsh Ladies
Vintage cars, the start of it all! Wales, UK 1953

Aged three, in my Uncles Jag. My first interest in Vintage Vehicles!
Parkerville, Western Australia 1986

Drawing in the Australian bush.
Exhibition; Bridgetown, Western Australia 1995
'Cullin Tea Day Jumpbaring', Colin Carlin...nicknamed Coke.

My first solo exhibition comprising mainly of pictures of Bridgetown, a country town south of WA and a well respected local community member, an Aboriginal Elder, Cullin, (pictured). The story of the exhibition received some media coverage and was featured in seven different newspapers in the country and city of Perth.
First 'solo' Exhibition, front page of Eastern Suburbs newspaper, Western Australia.
Photographing Simmental cows for Brunhilde & Fritz artwork.
ART COMPETITIONS I am not a competitive person and have not entered many competitions where my creations would be judged by one person, with set views on how they think art should look. I have won some awards in the past (before I made the decision to not enter any more competitions) and I am proud of my achievements. But now in the latter part of my life, my personal view is just to use your imagination, create, enjoy and be proud of what you have achieved. After all, whatever you create will hopefully be left for others to enjoy, long after you have left this earth. Due to arthritis, RSI etc, my drawing days are limited, I no longer accept commissions, but will continue with my Photography. |
I stopped to photograph these cows while travelling through Wheatbelt country, WA. That's me, crouching down with my camera, next to the fence. The cows were very friendly and curious so came to check me out. It was a great photo opportunity to get a close portrait shot. On the same trip I photographed an International truck, which images I also used as reference for an artwork. |
Media & techniques used...
Ceramics; using Terracotta Clay & Porcelain, to create sculptures and masks.
Print making; Inks, salt, relief, etc.
Oils
Water Colour paints
Aquarelles, Water Colour pencils
Coloured pencils
Acrylic
Pastels
Charcoal
Graphite
Mixed Media
Collage
Pen & Ink (with Stippling, Cross-hatching & Scumbling.)
Ink; using various widths of bamboo sticks.
Lino cut
Lettering
Illustration
Calligraphy
Photography (Started with black & white photography in 1963, aged 13, on a ship en-route from UK to Australia, through the Suez canal.)
Embroidery (Embroidered in 1969, aged 19, among many other items...a pair of Hippy jeans/flares, with a dragon, fairy, castle, dove, bong, flowers.)
Tapestries (Large tapestries created in London in the winter of 1976, aged 26, while house-bound due to snow and freezing temperatures.)
Digital Art
Enjoyed all media, but, in the end I decided to stick to...and try and master...one subject, drawing.
Works of art on paper, including Pastel painting.
* Stuck down a damp and cold gold mine, in Kalgoorlie Western Australia, after an electrical storm damaged the lift. Had to climb 20, 10 foot straight ladders, up a 200 foot shaft to the surface.
* Stood on the very edge of Victoria Falls, in Zimbabwe, Africa. Chased by an angry Rhino.
* Kicked out of Malawi, because we were wearing jeans on arrival at the airport...clean and neat jeans, not torn or dirty. I had the dress requirements with me (a dress 1 inch from the ground) but my (ex) husband didn't have a change of clothes as we had sent his luggage on to Zimbabwe...so the authorities stopped the plane from leaving for the next destination to get us back on the plane and sent us on our way!
* Fortunate to have seen many musicians including...Al Jarreau in London, Michael Jackson, Led Zeppelin, Deep Purple, Rolling Stones, The The, The Beach Boys (on a moon-lit night at Cottesloe beach Western Australia), heard the Beatles live in Abergavenny Wales...and because a member of our family was involved in the music industry, many more.
Saw Santana in Melbourne, but also heard them while we were visiting the beautiful Hapsburg Castle, high in the mountains of Germany, playing live somewhere in the valley below us. 'Black Magic Woman' was echoing across the mountains and valleys.
* Travelled through 30 countries in a mini van. Lived and worked in 40 different places.
* Lived in Zimbabwe, Africa...alone on a remote farm once, with no transport, hyenas howling and the threat of rebels taking over the farm. Scary stuff!
Invited by an African friend to his village. The huts had no bedding, no pillows, the Africans slept on compacted cow-dung, which was like concrete. (In Africa, in 1975, wages for farm work was on average 20 cents a day, plus food and accommodation...so I tipped $1 as often as I could, a weeks wages. At the same time in Rome, at public toilets, they charged everyone a fee of $1 to wipe the toilet seat!!!)
I saw a scorpion scuttle under my Fathers chair, told him but he just shrugged, oh well!!!
Ate warthog, (black tough hairy meat) terrible. Also snails, eels, crocodile tail and frogs.
* Lived and studied art, in London...where every weekend for a year visited places of interest around the London area.
* Climbed the Skirrid mountain, Llanvihangel Crucorney, South Wales.
* Flew in a Dakoda ww11 plane from London to Paris return.
* Climbed the Eiffel Tower, Paris, instead of taking the lift.
* Designed and built an Art Gallery in country Western Australia...with Cathedral ceiling, showroom, studio, office and kitchen.
* Renovated an old auto garage and shed next door, in to a double Art Studio in country Tasmania, with showroom & packaging room, office, studio & music room.
Zimbabwe, Africa, 1975.
Black mountains, (close to my home-town, Llanvihangel Crucorney) South Wales, 1976.
FAVOURITE PEOPLE, PLACES etc
People...
Leonard Nimoy, Peter O' Toole, Gough Whitlam, Martin Clunes, Tom Hanks, Rik Mayall & Adrian Edmondson (Vyv, The Young Ones), Dustin Hoffman, Joanna Lumley, Christine and the Queens.
Places...
Wales, Tasmania, Zimbabwe, London, Hawaii, Tibet.
Music... Funky Jazz, Alternative, R & B
Gino Vannelli, Enigma, Al Jarreau, Yellow, Michael Jackson, Christine & the Queens...and in my youth, a massive Beatles fan.
Movies...
Lawrence of Arabia, Mary & Max, Fantasia...Foreign movies; Raise the Red Lantern, Spring Summer Autumn Winter & Spring, Samsara, The Road Home, Parasite.
TV programs...
If you are the one (Chinese), Downton Abbey, Gaven & Stacey, Doc Martin, IT Crowd, Red Dwarf, Alone Australia.
Animals etc...
Staffordshire bull terrier, Bull terriers, Greyhounds, Red Cloud Kelpie, Clydesdale...Gypsy Cobs, Giraffe, Doves, Seahorses.
Currently (2024) have a beautiful 2 year old female Cavajack (Cavalier King Charles Spaniel x Jack Russell).
Flowers...
Daffodil
HOBBIES/INTERESTS
Photography, computers, gardening, home renovations, traveling, collecting weird stuff!