About Me
My Work and Inspiration
I am an East Devon based artist, living and working close to the sea on the Jurassic Coast. I draw inspiration for my paintings from the breathtaking sky, sea and coast of Devon and Dorset, and from human interactions there.
Beginning outdoors, I watch and closely observe the movement of the clouds, the rhythms of the sea, and look again and again at the changing effects of light. I draw in sketchbooks with pencils, pens or paint, recording the colours, shapes and forms of sky, clouds, horizon, the sea in all its moods, the coast and often the people there.
Continuing inside, I refer to the sketches as a guide, and after drawing in some compositional lines on my canvas I start to paint. I work intuitively using a variety of marks and brushstrokes to evoke the scene, its atmosphere, and something of the emotions felt whilst observing.
In terms of materials I like to paint in oils or acrylics on unbleached linen canvas. Sometimes I use a mixed media approach with acrylic pen and paint and oil paint - whatever I feel best suits the subject.
Some of my paintings are solely about looking at the sky, the weather, the horizon, the sea and especially the light and also might include some elements of the landscape. Other paintings might include one or more figures, with the emphasis then moving to what they are doing, seeing and experiencing as they interact with the scene, with nature and with each other.
My work has been shown in galleries and exhibitions in Cambridge, Cumbria, and throughout the South West, and my paintings are in collections in the UK and abroad. Visitors to my exhibitions have described my work as ‘Evoking the light and moods of the coast’, ‘Expressive and Atmospheric, ‘Joyful’, ‘Mindful’, and ‘Dynamic and Exhilarating’.
Background
Pauline was born in a Yorkshire mining village and her father and grandfathers were coal miners. Her family encouraged Pauline’s natural curiosity, her education and creativity, along with her love of drawing and painting. Aged 18, Pauline was accepted by Homerton College at Cambridge University to study Fine Art and Education. During this time she drew, painted, studied Art History (a lifelong love), exhibited at the iconic Kettles Yard Gallery, and after graduating with a B.Ed Hons set off to teach Art in secondary education in Greater London. Later, teaching, living and bringing up a family in Cumbria and Somerset followed, and what a privilege to be able to work with young people to nurture their ability and creativity.
All the time Pauline was taking any opportunity to look, to draw and to paint, with themes of landscape, light and water often appearing in her work - lakes in the Lake District; rivers, flooded fields, water meadows and big skies in Somerset.
For the last five years, Pauline has lived and worked by the coast in East Devon where her paintings reflect and celebrate the wide skies and horizon, the changing movement of the sea, along with the particularly beautiful quality of light in this area and the people who experience it.