Born in Leigh-on-Sea in Essex I have always been influenced by the joye de vivre, vivacity and laughter that surrounded me when I lived in that famous little home county. I settled in Cambridge in 1994 where I live with my husband.

I’ve been extraordinarily lucky in meeting and working with many gifted and talented painters and printmakers and owe a great personal debt to their support and encouragement throughout my career.

My best ideas often spring to mind when I’m doing something other than working in my studio, like watching TV, shopping or driving. It’s important for me to capture these first seeds of an idea in my notebooks. After a while I see which ideas tend to ‘stick’ in my mind and these I go on to develop into paintings or prints.

Most of my prints are etchings and drypoints, the graphic qualities demand a fairly direct and immediate treatment of a subject whereas an oil painting can take me ages – even years – as what appeared to be a good idea at the time is reworked or overpainted. My own feelings and responses change over time, so what started off, say, as an angry, morbid, grey painting can end up a spectacularly colourful creation celebrating life.