Katrina Wallis-King PS

Statement

The main focus of my work is landscape and nature. The impact of humankind on the natural world and wildlife is a real concern, with escalating consequences on habitats and systems that we’ve taken for granted. I especially enjoy the solace of quieter locations - moorland, forests, rivers and shorelines. My eye is often drawn to patterns in the landscape, rough textures of vegetation, light through a tangle of branches, movement of water around rock. Through my work I try to convey a mood that viewers can connect with emotionally.

Methodology

Drawing underpins my work, as an expressive form in its own right, or as a starting-point to explore other media - pastels, oils, acrylics, printmaking. Location sketches, notes and photos are used to reconnect with the experience back in the studio, often through small studies to develop into a final piece. Although I usually have a visual idea of the direction I want to go, it’s satisfying when the practical process itself generates further ideas or different ways of working. Gessoed mountboard or wood panel give me the scope to explore and introduce different media spontaneously.

Bio

My childhood was spent in Norway and on the move as a forces child. After graduating from UCL with a degree in Medieval Archaeology, I spent a year painting and drawing in Florence before returning to London. Alongside my later career as an addictions counsellor, I continued exploring my creativity on a self-taught basis, occasionally dipping into life-drawing sessions and printmaking workshops in my home city, Bath. In 2018 I made the decision to reconnect and focus on my art, and was elected as a member of the Pastel Society in 2021.

My paintings and prints are in private collections in the UK, Norway, Russia and the USA.