About Kate

I am an artist and designer living and working in York, UK. I grew up on the edge of Dartmoor and studied fine art, illustration and graphic design in Exeter and York. My paintings and drawings explore wild landscapes, nature and the human form through instinctive and expressive mark-making and enquiry into colour. My work is represented by galleries and has been exhibited in England and Wales.

I work in a variety of media (acrylic, oil, watercolour, pumice, graphite, charcoal and chalk) selected to suit the subject and the practicalities of how and where I am working.

My landscape painting process begins outside, with plein air studies and sketch books. I am drawn to remote places and can spend many days exploring and studying an area at all times of day and in different weather conditions, to understand its unique qualities. I sit quietly to tune in to its sounds, smells and textures, and to allow wildlife to relax in my presence. It is a solitary process and I work quickly to produce loose and immediate responses to the landscape around me, usually on paper. If I have the luxury of time and a shorter distance to walk, I might take my field easel and work on canvas or at a larger scale.

Out painting in the mountains of North Wales

Back in my studio, I use my outdoor studies and field notes to trigger memories and inspire larger paintings. On the easel, studio paintings take their own journeys and develop over a period of time. I might choose to introduce texture and imagined or abstracted elements to create an emotional impression of a time and place rather than a direct representation, often incorporating the expressive marks and line work of my original studies.

As well as landscapes, I regularly paint and draw the human body. Life drawing is an essential element of my practice that I use to develop observational skills, explore mark-making techniques and hone my ability to record visual information swiftly, editing out unnecessary detail.

Photo © Olivia Brabbs Photography

My studio at Arnup Studios in Holtby. The studios were purpose built by well-known artists, Mick and Sally Arnup (painter/potter and sculptor)

My bright mid-century studio in Holtby has natural north light and is spacious enough for me to work on multiple pieces simultaneously, often at a large scale. There is always something on the go!

I am a member of the Federation of Small Businesses (FSB), Visual Artists Association (VAA), The Artists Information Company (AN) and CuratorSpace.

Please contact me if you would like to arrange a visit to the studio.

I am also a graphic designer and illustrator. You can see a taster of my design work here.