COLLECTIONS
Taking inspiration from the tradition of still life painting, this collection celebrates the beauty of floral arrangement. The versatility of oil paint allows for the development of energetic brushstrokes and a richness in texture and colour which is typical of Christines work.
All the paintings in this collection have been inspired by my garden in Cheshire.
The colour, light and forms within it constantly change providing an endless source of ideas for me to work from. My aim is not to faithfully copy the individual flower and plant shapes, in fact I often make a conscious effort to not do this, but to use their colours and growth habits as a basis for a painting.
What interests me most is the energy and exuberance of a slightly disordered border, where plants intertwine and compete for light and space, self-setting to create unexpected combinations and contrasts.
I work mainly in watercolour because I love the transparency of the colours which can be layered over each other to create endless variations in hue and tone.
I hope, when you look at these paintings, you are able to share some of my wonder and joy in the beauty of that space we call a garden.
Light breaking through cloud, the sweep and curve of hills, the contrasting textures of bracken, grass rocks and trees. These are some of the influences which inform Christines paintings.
Remembered glimpses of transitional moments, the affects of the weather, the season and the time of day, provide subject matter for her semi-abstract paintings.
Christine works in oil, building up layers of paint with expressive, energetic brushstrokes. It is a process of concealment and revelation, working in an intuitive way and responding and reacting to what happens on the canvas.
The paintings capture a moment in time and reflect our emotional connection with the natural world
I live and work in Tarporley, a village about 10miles from Chester, and most of the paintings in this collection are influenced by the local landscape, particularly the area covered by the once royal forest of Delamere and the extensive mid-Cheshire ridge which forms part of the Sandstone Trail.
When you visit these places there is a powerful sense of history stretching back beyond Roman times, and it is still possible to see ancient land formations and field systems. .From high vantage points, you can see the sweeping undulations of the land and imagine the immense glacial movements that formed them. It is the drama of these landscapes, their vastness, and openness that attracts me and that I want to capture in my paintings.
The paintings' titles refer to actual places but my aim is not to recreate the view but to convey something of the emotional response they evoke in me.