I am an artist,author ,illustrator and art teacher from New Zealand. I studied in New Zealand and obtained my University degree there. Coming from a family that fostered the Arts it was natural for me to begin drawing and painting...
Read MoreI am an artist,author ,illustrator and art teacher from New Zealand. I studied in New Zealand and obtained my University degree there. Coming from a family that fostered the Arts it was natural for me to begin drawing and painting while very young. Since that time I have pursued a lifelong interest in learning about Art and for some years I taught art and pottery in New Zealand schools. I obtained an award for excellence in Drawing from New York in the 1980's and have exhibited my work across New Zealand and illustrated more than 30 books. My art work is in private collections across the world. After marriage to a French sea captain in 1992 we spent many years in voluntary service on medical ships in the South Pacific Islands where I personally took teams onshore to study the indigenous cultural forms of islanders, something I am very interested in .I have a passion for drawing and painting wherever I go in remote communities . I prefer using watercolour and pen and charcoal for the immediacy of the materials and transparency of colour. Sketching and painting from life [I keep sketch journals] I find , trains the visual memory in a unique way. However, I also enjoy painting large works in Oils whenever I can. [Being on boats makes it difficult to paint in Oils and watercolour is easier to transport.} My own heritage includes ancestors from the Shetland Islands north of Scotland- a sea faring people. Since 2005 we have spent increasing amounts of time in Europe where two of our children[ and grandchildren live. Last year we spent sometime on a boat in the Venetian lagoon and I was amazed at the rich artistic heritage there and we plan to return and explore the wonderful area.
