A little about me

I’m an art explorer, playing with various techniques and media, including paints, inks, textiles and photographs. At the moment my artworks consist mainly of collages, small textile pieces, journals, altered books and sketchbooks, with an emphasis on texture and urban settings.

I’ve always been creative, with art and writing being an important part of my life since childhood. However, I’ve had no formal art training apart from the occasional workshop or WEA classes. I do, though, have a certificate in Creative Writing from Sheffield University that is proudly displayed on the wall of my ‘study’. History, music, computer games and reading are also high on my interests list.

Although I’ve kept diaries on and off since I was a child, it’s only relatively recently that these have been replaced with journals – “art & everyday life” being my main one, in which I record my travels, everyday matters, my creative explorations and significant events. It’s not a journal that I necessarily use every day: rather it is a place of retreat, to play and, most importantly, to be me.

This blog is a public extension of that personal record. Here are my art swaps, projects and travels along the creative path that I’m happy to share with others. It’s also where occasionally I’ll discuss more private matters, like my constant battle with fibromyalgia – a condition that forced me to retire from work back in 1997 and that can very easily dominate my whole life if I let it. I may also post photos of holidays, family (I have a daughter and son as well as 3 grandchildren, plus a wonderful husband), places I’ve visited and of my home city, Sheffield, and surrounding area…

Linda D.

Sheffield, UK