​Katie Stanley is a British artist living and working in Somerset. Working predominantly in oils, Katie enjoys painting in a loose, instinctive style, often using thick 'impasto' paint to build up texture in her work. Her paintings tend to focus on simple, everyday subjects, bringing them to life with colour and tonality.

Katie frames all her own pieces using handcrafted frames that compliment and enrich her art.

​Sam Waters, a Shropshire-based painter, joyfully explores old industrial buildings and nature in her art. With a background in ceramics and textiles, her unique style emerges through captivating layering techniques. Sam's urban-inspired pieces evoke cityscapes with rich layers and a blend of muted palettes and vibrant pops of colour. Bold marks and finely drawn lines bring life to forgotten industrial buildings and inner cities, derived from on-location photos and sketches.
 
In contrast, Sam's floral creations burst with bright, bold colours, radiating vitality and joy. Her return to artistic practice after a corporate role reflects dedication, infusing her work with depth shaped by life experiences. Sam's art stands as a testament to her passion for creative expression.

​I work primarily in oils, and am a keen sketcher whose work is often rooted in observations of the local landscape and plants. Sometimes I paint en plein air but more often in the studio. 

In 2020 I began exploring my local footpaths daily, becoming deeply attached to the nearby countryside, observing the day to day changes in both the landscape and the plants. Although not formally trained in fine art, I was inspired to explore painting with oils for the first time and found new fulfilment in this expressive medium.

Inspired by the beauty in our everyday world, I celebrate that in my work. I am drawn to the play of light, colour and pattern, my paintings often capturing a sense of season, as I seek to express the feeling of being within nature in a moment in time. 

Artist's Statement
I am interested in representing real life, drawn to how light falls on, shines through, and bounces off the world around us. Striving for a balance between the critical observation of surface, and constant reference to structural anatomy, I aim to elevate and demystify both my subject and my process.
​My daily practice is observational drawing. Using pencil and oil, I describe still life, human, animal, rural, and urban landscape. Not working to a pristine finish, my work is relatable, figurative, and sometimes visceral, with expressive traces of process.
I write a blog, and share livestream and edited video demonstrations on YouTube, Instagram, and Twitch. My YouTube channel has a large collection of demos and other material.  
I believe that objectification, and its insidious consequence cosmetic 'enhancement', fuel our dissatisfaction with the perfectly imperfect human form. I would like to see more diverse representation of the body, and consider art as having a useful role in championing appreciation of all bodies.

​My name is Leanne Lythgoe and i practice bas relief casting, using plants and flowers. I live in Weston super Mare and forage plants seasonally from around the area. 
Clay is rolled out flat with a smooth surface, flowers are arranged and then rolled into the clay, leaving an impression. A frame is secured on the clay surface and plaster is poured. Once dry, the clay is peeled away to reveal a perfect botanical relief.

For this submission , and to highlight the importance of Somerset’s “rewilding”, I have used plants from typical roadside verges. I want to show , in detail, the diverse life that that can emerge in urban and often polluted areas, when nature is allowed to thrive.

​Award winning artist Ros Cuthbert MA (RCA) RWA graduated from the Central School of Art and Design London in 1974. She was tutored by the visionary painter Cecil Collins, and internationally respected wood engraver Blair Hughes-Stanton. She went on to study her MA in Painting at the Royal College of Art where she explored the figure, pattern and still life subjects, winning the Figurative art Prize in 1977. In 1981 Ros and her husband and baby daughter moved to Winscombe, North Somerset where she still lives and works.
In 1998 Ros became an RWA Academician at the Royal West of England Academy where she exhibits annually.
Ros has work in many public and private collections worldwide.

www.roscuthbert.com

Work with images which provoke  feelings, dreams and half remembered memories- not necessarily mine!

Love using bright colours, bold lines and popular culture - advertising, tv, cinema and above all comics.


Instagram.com/ frankharwoodpaintings

Matthew Fackrell is a recent graduate from North Somerset, based in and around Bristol. Training formally in Anthropology (BA) and Sustainability (MSc) after finishing A-levels (including Fine Art), his passion for painting and photography coincides with an interest in people and place - using visual media to explore moments and interactions.