One of the lovely things about living by the sea in Eastbourne is the opportunity to take an evening stroll down to the beach and to watch all the changing colours as the sun goes down.
The sea and the sky range from jade greens, through blues and greys, to purples, depending on the weather, sun, time and just the way the light is. You can never quite capture it in a photograph as the changes are subtle and shifting.
There's also the shapes and forms, not just of the boats pulled onto the pebbles, but the slightly industrial architecture of fishing and sailing clubs, seaside attractions and boat sheds. I do sometimes sketch down on the beach, but mostly I take photographs for reference and then sketch from them in the studio where I am surrounded by the tools and materials that I might decide to use.
Before moving here in 2004, we were in central London, and although I loved being in such a diverse and exciting city I had always hankered after living by the sea. I’d feel wistful after a visit to the coast and now I feel the same after a visit to London. I do love the more jolly side of the seaside, with piers and sticks of rock, icecreams and beach huts, but my artistic and ceramic inspiration comes from the natural forms of the coastline, the fishing boats, architecture and a bit of Art Deco glamour and mid-century modern art. It doesn’t all have to be polished and beautiful, a bit of faded grandeur can have it’s own grace and charm. Peeling paint and rusty metal, weathered by the salty air, is all part of the coastal landscape environment.
