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A Peek Inside My Light-Filled Painting Studio

The studio!

There’s nothing quite like having a light-filled space to paint in, and I’m very lucky to have a studio that looks straight out onto the garden.

It’s one of my favourite places to be. I can sit down at my easel, look out at the garden and, depending on the time of year, be surrounded by completely different colours, light and inspiration. Sometimes I’m working away and find myself distracted by something happening outside — a change in the light, the trees moving in the wind or simply a glimpse of the garden that catches my eye.

Having plenty of natural light is particularly important to me when I’m painting. Colour can change so much depending on the light, and I love seeing how the colours on my palette and canvas shift throughout the day. It’s also one of the reasons I enjoy painting during the summer months when the studio is flooded with light.

And then there’s the pink summerhouse!

I originally thought of it as somewhere to sit and enjoy the garden, but naturally, as an artist, I soon started thinking about whether I could paint in it. And yes, I can! On a lovely summer’s day, there’s something rather wonderful about taking my paints outside and working surrounded by the garden.

Of course, this is Scotland, so the weather doesn’t always play along. When the heavens open or the wind decides to make an appearance, I simply retreat back into the studio. The summerhouse may have to wait for another day, but at least I have a very good Plan B.

I think where you paint inevitably becomes part of your work. I’m surrounded by the things that inspire me — light, colour, changing skies, flowers, trees and glimpses of the world beyond the garden. Even when I’m working on a painting of somewhere completely different, those colours and memories are always somewhere in the background.

My studio is very much a working space rather than a pristine showroom. There are paintings in progress, brushes, tubes of paint, palettes and probably more pieces of paper than I actually need. But that’s how I like it. It’s a space where I can experiment, make a mess, change my mind and, hopefully, create something I’m happy with.

And when the Scottish weather finally gives me a beautiful sunny day, I have the added luxury of moving my paints into the pink summerhouse and pretending, just for a little while, that I’m painting somewhere much more exotic!

Fancy having a peek at what I’m working on? I’ll be sharing more paintings, studio snippets and the inspiration behind my work here on the blog.