Biography
Rosemary was born in Nottinghamshire in 1960 and originally trained and qualified as a registered nurse in Sheffield. A year into further midwifery training in Harlow, Essex in 1983 she gave up her studies to undertake an Arts Foundation Course and then went on to gain a B.A (Hons) degree in Textile and Fashion Design at Winchester School of Art (1984-1987). In both 1988 and 1989 she was awarded places at the Royal College of Art in London to study for an M.A. in Fine Art Printmaking but the birth of her daughter and then her son in those years meant she was unable to attend.
She spent the next 20 years initially as a successful freelance textile designer for the international bedding and furnishings market creating designs for, amongst others, Sanderson, John Lewis, Jeff Banks and Vymura and numerous print and weave companies across the world. For the latter 6 years she returned to work as a surgical staff nurse in Sheffield and then as a district nurse and at her local hospice. Her art making continued spasmodically during this period including a couple of minor awards but it was not until 2009 that she was able to commit herself to life as a full time artist.
Initially printmaking was instinctively her focus (she won the Printmakers' Printmaker Award at Printfest in Cumbria in 2013 and was awarded the Galleries magazine award at the R.E. National Open Print Exhibition in 2018) but painting and mixed media is an equally important part of her work. Mark making and colour continue to predominate in both disciplines and her love of still life and landscape is depicted in either semi abstracted or in more illustrative form.
Rosemary has exhibited regularly in several highly regarded galleries and art fairs across the UK.
In June 2020 after nearly 30 years living in the Peak District, she moved to Suffolk and then to rural Kent in August 2021 where she works from her home studio.
Artist’s Statement
October, 2022
My work evolves, ebbs and flows, sometimes doubling back for another look. There are changes of direction, quirks, varying energies and interests which are part of me; my own truth shaped by my own unique history. I have had to learn to accept these to be authentic and to truly embrace creativity.
Subject matter is shaped by these changing currents. A line or a shape whether it be abstract, geometric or more representational are grasped in the moment - a building, a pear, a vessel, a plant, a circle; all are documented as things of interest and curiosity. Mark making and colour are major elements - in paint, charcoal, print and collage.
Ultimately I hope that my work finds an unspoken or unconscious empathy with the viewer - an honest, simple communication.