Becoming a professional artist never crossed my mind. Not remotely. Never once. My childhood ambition was to be an actress, so that's what I did. In fact, I still am. However, my pet portrait business seems to have rather taken over. When I'm not entertaining folk with my verbal whimsy, I spend every spare working minute absorbed in art. It's all been a bit of a surprise to the girl who failed her Art O Level back in 1983.
So what am I doing here? Well, a close friend lost their beloved cat Blu and knowing that I was "a bit creative", asked me to "have a go" at drawing the late fluff ball. I really didn't have a clue, but after a bit of guidance from A Kick Up The Arts in Melton Mowbray and watching countless tutorials and studying the likes of Lisa Watkins and Bonnie Snowden, something clicked. Blu got shared on social media, one thing led to another, word of mouth and recommendations were shared, and suddenly I was very much in demand as an artist. Imposter Syndrome kicked in, but I've overcome it and actually appreciate I've found something other than performance that I'm rather good at. She says modestly.
So now I'm here, an Associate, a professional pet portrait working mostly in Polychromos pencils on Pastelmat, making people happy in the UK, France and Canada. I wish my old art teachers could see me now.