Who am I?
I’m Kirsty, artist, writer of childrens books, pyrographer & general creative type. I’ve been lucky enough to work with children most of my working life, both inside and outside the classroom as I’m an N.N.E.B. and Forest School Leader, but I’m now focusing on my art. I have always been creative, when I couldn’t paint my creativite streak showed itself in other ways, writing, pyrography, doodling, card making, and any kind of crafting I could get my hands on, I always had to be making or doing something.
When life has been rough, and it has been very rough at times over the past few years, I’ve used my art as a positive therapy tool to lift myself up to a more positive state of mind. I was prevented from painting for quite a while. At one point I had only my pencil case and some paper so I used the sparse materials and the spark of defiance that I had and carried on. I quickly realised that the raw art I was making was the outpouring of my frustrations at the time. I was wriggling free from the constraints of a difficult and controlling relationship and it was a relief to get everything out. I began to channel my creativity, it was and still is my art therapy. Now I am working towards turning those black and white pictures into a colouring book as there are so many! I found a way forward and I am now taking a diploma in Art Therapy so I can help others too. I’ve used the last couple of years to reflect, grow and settle into my new life. I now live in a safe home in the beautiful Surrey Hills and I have a studio to work in again!
What do I do?
I use various mediums including watercolours, pen and ink, acrylics, gouache and more to produce artwork. I’ve painted on all sorts of things from the usual paper and canvas to rocks and bedroom walls. I often use metallic, iridescent, pearlescent, fluorescent and phosphorescent (glow in the dark) paints in my work to add movement or another level of effect to a painting. I usually have to take a UV torch with me to exhibitions to show off their effects properly and sometimes take the painting into a dark cupboard room to show the glow in the dark effect!
Nowadays much of the art world is about finding ‘your niche’ which can be really tricky for an artist like me. I am capable of producing a broad range of art in many different styles, sometimes it’s so broad that sometimes my artwork may not be instantly recognisable as mine. I might be creating fantasy or abstract art one day, painting illustrations the next, and completing a wood burning the next. Painting animals and nature is very close to my heart but it comes out in so many different forms, take a look at my gallery and you’ll see.
How can I help you?
I can fill your home with beautiful art that feeds your creativity and inspires you on a daily basis. My art can light up a dull space and bring life to your home. It can tie rooms together and create an artistic flow throughout your house or work area. Best of all you will have a one-off, original piece of art that nobody else in the world has! The art you choose to display is a representation you, where you’ve come from, where you are now or where your going. It can weave together the different aspects of your life and personality, it’s all about your self expression.
Art is so therapeutic and can make you feel and think positively. It can brighten your outlook every time you look at it, it will literally lift your spirits! When you buy original art you are buying a peice of the artists heart and soul as well as years and years of hard work, experience and practice which is priceless. You will have a utterly unique work that will be all about you, and nobody else in the world will have one the same piece! It will make you smile whenever you look at it.