Artists & Illustrators - UK (2020-04)

ARTISTIC RECOVERY

I onlysubscribedtoyourmagazinea coupleofdaysagoandI’vesince

beenaskingmyselfwhyI hadn’tdonethissooner.I wasa servingpolice

officeruntila coupleofweeksago.Butaftera veryinteresting 18 years

ofservice,attheripeoldageof40,thedecisionwasmadetomedically

retireme.Sadly,duetoinjuriesI receivedin theexecutionofmyduty,

I havebeenleftwithpermanentphysicalandmentalhealthdisabilities.

I lostthemajorityofusein bothofmyhandsandI sufferwithcomplex

post-traumaticstressdisorder(CPTSD).

Priortojoiningthepoliceservice,I wasa keenartist,turningmyhands

tomostthingsI tried.Mycareerconsumedmyeverydaylifeandmyarty

sidewasshelved.Whilstbeingonsickleave,I decidedtorevisitmy

interestin artandtotryandseewhatI couldphysicallydowitha pencil

andpieceofpaper,which,frustratingly,wasn’tverymuch.

Mysisterknewwhatartusedtomeantomeandencouragedmeto

exploreotherartycategories.I’mverygladshedid.WhilstI knowI will

neverbeabletodowhatI wasoncecapableof,I amfinallybeginningto

findmyfeet(orshouldthatbehands?!)havingincorporatedtheuseof

drawingaidssuchascompasses,stencilsandtubingtohelpmehold

pensandpencils.

I havefounda lotofcomfortfromrevisitingmyloveforart.Now,when

myCPTSDis startingtotakea holdofme,I trymybesttodivert

unwantedthoughtsontopaper.It wasmysisterwhodiscoveredyour

magazineandpointedmein yourdirection,andI havefoundthatfrom

justreadingFebruary’sissuethatI amgoingtofindyourmagazine

incrediblyinterestingandvaluablemovingforward.Thankyou!

AndrewFoster,viaemail

LETTER OF THE MONTH

PLACE YOUR BETSY
As a self-taught artist I have
always enjoyed experimenting –
it is my way of learning. For a
while I lived in Cornwall and
was lucky enough to exhibit
successfully in several galleries.
A move to Devon and a change
of circumstances meant I was
unable to paint for a few years,
so I took up photography. I joined
a club and entered competitions.
Then that inner voice that
whispers “what if?” began
niggling away again.
I took some scans of my
artwork and monoprints and
began layering them with photos
and played around for hours
and hours. The whole process
was addictive.
I have enclosed an image based
on Wheal Betsy, a derelict engine
house on north Dartmoor. This I had
printed on aluminium and it was

Letters

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SHEDFULLOFIDEAS

Mydaughterdelightedmewitha

subscriptiontoArtists& Illustrators

and,havingreceivedtwocopies

already,I amdelightedwithsucha

greatgift.Inreferencetotheletter

about“ARoomofOne’sOwn”,

I investedina pottingshedfromour

localfencingcompanyinYeoviland

nowhavea wonderfulstudiointhe

gardenwithwest-facingwindows

anda wonderfulshelftorestmy

easelsonandlotsofstoragespace

inanoldchestofdrawers.

I haveputinelectricitysohave

lightanda heaterandspendmany

hoursenjoyingpaintingand

drawing.I knowI willbehighly

inspiredbyyourmagazine.

SusanBall,viaemail

NEWDIRECTIONS

I havejustreplacedalltheolder

workonmyPortfolioPluspagewith

a newcollectiondevelopedoverthe

lastyear.Thisis a changeof

directionfrommyprevious

figurativelandscapesandcomes

afterregularlyattendinglifeclasses

inrecentyears.I havebecome

fascinatedbythechallenges

ofdepictingthefigureand

feelthisis justa start.

Asyouhavementioned

inyourexcellentmagazine,

a changeofdirectioncan

beverybeneficial.

Experimentationis also

a greatwayofstirringthe

creativejuicesandI am

alreadyplayingaround

withotherideasand

workingindifferent

media.

DennisLee,viaemail

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accepted and sold from an open

exhibition in Moretonhampstead.

Landscapes have always been my

favourite, aiming for an impression

rather than a true representation.

I have given up trying to fi nd a

category to place my work and

now I just call them mixed media.

Carol Preston, via email

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