HILARY

I originate from South Yorkshire, but have lived on the Isle of Wight since 1984. I originally came to the Island as a sailing instructor, but I loved it so much I stayed. I studied woven textiles at Surrey Institute in Farnham in the early 1990's. It was during that degree course I developed my ability and style of painting.

My paintings tend to be very marine orientated, but I also paint landscapes. I live in Cowes and enjoy sailing myself, so capturing the activity of sailing events such as Cowes Week is one of my favourites. I am also very much at home on rugged coastlines and enjoy painting these scenes in Cornwall and Portugal, to name a few. Recent travelling has taken me to distant places where I enjoy keeping a visual diary with my sketchbook and watercolours. I have a motor caravan and I spent 4 months driving round the coast of Italy in 2003. I recently returned to Tuscany to paint more of the beautiful landscapes there.

All the places I paint have an atmosphere that appeals to me, and this is what I endeavour to capture as I paint out on location.