I am a profoundly deaf portraiture artist based in London. As a deaf person I’ve always had to study people visually to understand what is happening around me. I am constantly reading how people’s feelings are reflected almost involuntarily via gestures, body language and facial expressions.
This is why in art I mainly work from life, using bold brushstrokes and colours to reveal the elusive character and aura of my sitters. I use oil for flexibility as the face is always evolving during the painting process - likeness and character can emerge and disappear in moments.
Through harmonising the various techniques, I have learnt during my two years at Heatherleys School I have gained new confidence in my own distinctive mark-making and intuitive colour choices. I now work quickly and instinctively allowing intuition to become an ever more powerful tool.
I want my art to celebrate the vibrancy of visual communication and sign language. My artistic goal is to be able to say: “I paint as I see, as I feel. They also feel and see like me, but they don't dare... I dare” (Cezanne, 1870). I hope in doing this, others will be able to dare too.
