Kath Woollen

Art has always been a great love of mine for as long as I can remember and I desperately wanted to go to Art College when I left school, however my father completely forbade it, saying that I would turn into a "pot smoking hippy", and I was subsequently sent off to Secretarial College - bear in mind that this was in the 1960's when parents usually had the last say!

As I grew older, got married, and spent time with my career, and bringing up my son and daughter, my art receded into the background, but was always there - ready for me to return to when the time was right. That "right" time came in a way that I wish wasn't so heartbreaking, and I now find that Art is my passion and my salvation after losing my son in 2004 to osteosarcoma (a rare kind of bone cancer). Before he died, he was a gifted artist and graphic designer, and a huge inspiration. After he died, I took the offered early retirement from my stressful management job in Public Relations as I was so ill (physically, mentally and emotionally) and felt that I needed a new direction in my life in order to carry on and try to rebuild my future with the rest of my much-loved family.

As for my artistic experience - well, I got a Credit in GCE 'O' Level Art in 1968, but have no other formal art qualifications or professional training, and am largely self-taught. For the last couple of years I've been the Secretary of Seaton Sluice Art Club in Northumberland, and that has also helped to rekindle my passion for my art. My family (especially my daughter Angela, and my sisters Gill and Linda, and sisters-in-law Susan and Jackie) have always believed in my artistic ability and encouraged me to take painting up again, giving me huge support, and I know that my son, Andrew, would also have encouraged me as he was my greatest artistic fan and critic. I would also like to pay tribute to Jim, my husband of many years (we married in 1971), who has trailed around art galleries and amateur art exhibitions with me without complaint!

My "artistic style" is quite varied and I guess I would describe it as being "instinctive" and "from the heart", with many of my paintings being quite dramatic and semi-impressionistic. Again, as I've had no formal artistic training, I just use my own methods and media, and go with my "gut feeling", which may not pass the "technical merit" criteria, but does allow greater freedom of expression and a certain "naive freshness". I am extremely pleased, and humbled, to have recently had success in selling some of my paintings at the local Bottleworks Art Exhibitions and our own Seaton Sluice Art Club Exhibitions, and have had some paintings accepted for display and for sale at The Glendale Gallery at Florin of Wooler, again with some success. Several other galleries have been approached with a view to taking some of my paintings and prints, and I'm looking forward to hearing from them soon.

I am also in the process of applying to be an Exhibitor at the renowned Alnmouth Arts Festival in Northumberland, and hope that I am successful in this venture.

I am a member of the Society for All Artists (SAA) and also display paintings on the "Paintings I Love" website.

With Love

Kath x