Artist Statement.
Drawing is central to my practice. Informed by close observation of natural forms, lines and patterns that are often overlooked, I reimagine these through a meditative and intuitive process. I also explore my ancestral connection to lace-making in Youghal, Ireland, drawing on the visual language of intricate patterns and delicate structures to honour my heritage.
Alongside my studio practice, I work extensively as an Artist Facilitator, engaging with a wide range of communities including children, young people, teachers, community groups and adults with SEND. This role is fundamental to my practice and has deeply shaped my approach to making. Working across gallery, educational and community settings has reinforced the importance of play, experimentation and instinctive mark-making – all qualities I actively bring back into my own work. The uninhibited creativity of participants, particularly children, continues to influence my use of gesture, rhythm, pattern and colour.
Drawing is a daily practice for me, functioning as both a creative discipline and a tool for reflection, mental wellbeing and connection. My intricate mark-making is balanced with looser, more expressive gestures and vibrant colour, reflecting an ongoing dialogue between structure and spontaneity. This balance mirrors the fluid nature of memory and perception, allowing each work to be encountered from multiple vantage points.
I primarily work with pen, felt tip, oil pastel and acrylic on paper and reclaimed fabric, often developing multiple works simultaneously in a fluid and experimental way. Recently, I have been focusing on collage, dismantling and rearranging my drawings to introduce new layers, textures and relationships through reclaimed materials such as lace, fabric and tape. I have also been exploring the process of making my own stencils, using them to temporarily conceal sections of my drawings, adding further marks, before revealing the hidden areas beneath. Originally developed for a community workshop, this process has since become one of my favourite methods within my own practice, allowing me to let go and fully embrace chance!
Alongside this, I have been creating short animations, or ‘moving drawings’, which document the evolving processes of constructing collages and working with stencils, extending my exploration of repetition, gesture and movement. Through layering, covering and revealing, I create surfaces that explore themes of camouflage, inviting the viewers to slow down and shift their perspectives. Like lace, my work exists in the space between presence and absence, where structure and transparency coexist. What is hidden gradually emerges, while what is visible can dissolve back into pattern, reflecting my ongoing interest in the interplay between revealing and concealing.
Drawing is central to my practice. Informed by close observation of natural forms, lines and patterns that are often overlooked, I reimagine these through a meditative and intuitive process. I also explore my ancestral connection to lace-making in Youghal, Ireland, drawing on the visual language of intricate patterns and delicate structures to honour my heritage.
Alongside my studio practice, I work extensively as an Artist Facilitator, engaging with a wide range of communities including children, young people, teachers, community groups and adults with SEND. This role is fundamental to my practice and has deeply shaped my approach to making. Working across gallery, educational and community settings has reinforced the importance of play, experimentation and instinctive mark-making – all qualities I actively bring back into my own work. The uninhibited creativity of participants, particularly children, continues to influence my use of gesture, rhythm, pattern and colour.
Drawing is a daily practice for me, functioning as both a creative discipline and a tool for reflection, mental wellbeing and connection. My intricate mark-making is balanced with looser, more expressive gestures and vibrant colour, reflecting an ongoing dialogue between structure and spontaneity. This balance mirrors the fluid nature of memory and perception, allowing each work to be encountered from multiple vantage points.
I primarily work with pen, felt tip, oil pastel and acrylic on paper and reclaimed fabric, often developing multiple works simultaneously in a fluid and experimental way. Recently, I have been focusing on collage, dismantling and rearranging my drawings to introduce new layers, textures and relationships through reclaimed materials such as lace, fabric and tape. I have also been exploring the process of making my own stencils, using them to temporarily conceal sections of my drawings, adding further marks, before revealing the hidden areas beneath. Originally developed for a community workshop, this process has since become one of my favourite methods within my own practice, allowing me to let go and fully embrace chance!
Alongside this, I have been creating short animations, or ‘moving drawings’, which document the evolving processes of constructing collages and working with stencils, extending my exploration of repetition, gesture and movement. Through layering, covering and revealing, I create surfaces that explore themes of camouflage, inviting the viewers to slow down and shift their perspectives. Like lace, my work exists in the space between presence and absence, where structure and transparency coexist. What is hidden gradually emerges, while what is visible can dissolve back into pattern, reflecting my ongoing interest in the interplay between revealing and concealing.
