As Founder of Tembo Graphics I work in the specialist areas of Medical, Veterinary and Scientific Illustration.  With a B.A. (Hons) Degree in Design, specializing in Natural History and Scientific Illustration and as a qualified Medical Artist (MAA postgraduate) I offer design, illustration and medical art solutions in a variety of fields, working closely with clients to sometimes tight deadlines.

As a Medical Artist I work in the specialist areas of Medical, Veterinary and Scientific Illustration. 

Please visit my other website www.tembographics.com to find out more.

Eye logo for Lancashire Eye Clinic created in Adobe Illustrator

Qualifications

• Registered Medical Illustration Practitioner
• Postgraduate Qualification in Medical Art
• Edexcel Level 3 BTEC Award Life Drawing
• OCNW Level 2 Award Life Drawing
• B.A. (Hons) Design (Scientific & Natural History Illustration)
• Registered Midwife
• Registered Nurse

Professional Organisations

• Member of the Assocation Europeenes des Illustrateurs Medicaux et Scientifiques
• Member of the Association of Illustrators
• Member of the Association of Medical Illustrators (USA)
• Member of the Fine Art Trade Guild
• Professional Member of the Medical Artists’ Association of Great Britain.
• Member of the Royal College of Midwives (RCM)
• Member of the Royal College of Nurses (RCN)
• Full Member of The Writers Guild

Samlesbury - 2010

I love working as an Animal Artist!

In my work as an animal artist I enjoy trying to create images that are dynamic and emotive.

Commissions have their own challenges and it is always a delight to be asked to do  one.  Our animals mean so much to us and are such an important part of our lives…..

I try to capture the character of each animal and for that reason I like to hear all about your pet…to try and portray character, feeling and emotion.  I prefer to work from life when taking on an animal commission and am willing to travel, from time to time from my home in the North West (UK), to make my own sketches, colour notes and to take my own photographs to ensure an accurate portrayal of an animal.  I know this is not always possible, so in cases where I am unable to meet your pet I need a variety of photographs ranging from distant to very, very close up!

I also enjoy creating animal art for exhibition which allows me to explore new themes which is always fun.

Please visit the News page and Events page to see what is going on!

William the Dalmation

Luca the Weimeraner

I love working as an Equine Artist!

I enjoy creating artwork for exhibitions and from time to time I accept commissions.

Above: I am putting last minute finishing touches to this five foot wide oil painting entitled:

 ‘A tribute to Lancashire Constabulary Mounted Branch.’

The reference for this painting came from time spent with the Mounted Branch.  I hope that this painting shows the remarkable relationship between these animals and their riders and the bond that they all share as they go about their sometimes challenging duties.

I am honoured to have been invited to exhibit this oil painting at Lancashire Constabulary Headquarters where it is now on show.

In the column on the right: From time to time I create illustrations of equines at World Horse Welfare Penny Farm near Blackpool and sell prints in their shop to help raise funds for the charity.  The equines there really do come in all shapes and sizes!  I hope my artwork helps in a small way to support the fantastic work that is done there.

My love of horses is why I now enjoy creating artwork of them.  I look for movement, expression…something interesting to turn the artwork into something dramatic or emotive.  Behind it all are the memories of what it is like to have your own horse.  Back in my twenties, having finished my nursing training in the UK,  I returned to live in Nairobi (where we lived for 11 years) where I was then able to buy two horses.  Well, the first was given to me really; I just had to buy the tack!  That was my sweet old polo pony Nugget who I loved hacking out on.  A vet friend then talked me into buying a race horse off the Nairobi Race Track as she had come across a very handsome 16.1 chesnut Thoroughbred gelding who was a schoolmaster and was about to be retired at age 6 years.  The  ‘trial’ ride out with the jockeys at the race track training yard one morning was interesting and they all had a good laugh; I had no control at all and no brakes.  I just did what everyone else did!  I was extremely daunted but excited by the responsibility of taking on a race horse and day one with Oasis did not go well; in our nervousness  (both Oasis and  me) I somehow ended up sliding down his neck feet first (luckily) and hitting the ground with a thud.  Happily that was the only exciting event and he turned out to be the most wonderful  friend I could imagine. We had a lot of fun having a go at one day eventing….not a lot of success though! Being disqualified in the dressage (not making it round the corner and going over the rope) was how it started really….but we got a bit better than that in the end. The question everyone used to ask me was if I ever took him out at a full gallop….and the answer was no, a fast canter was enough for me and I was never sure enough of my skills as a rider or the ground to dare risk any more. He was too precious. When I left Kenya I sadly sold him on…but to a fantastic home; to a lovely lady who was the Japanese Ambassadors wife in Kenya at the time who already had a top dressage horse and wanted another one for showjumping. She was a superb rider, very kind and careful with Oasis and she loved him……nearly as much as I did.

Portrait painting is a speciality!

Please contact me for an informal chat if you would like to discuss a potential portrait commission.

I work in many different types of media ranging from pencil to charcoal, watercolour and oils.  You can even have a portrait ‘painted’ using Adobe Illustrator and Photoshop!  I like to work from a combination of life and photographic reference…but nothing can beat a number of portrait sittings, where possible.  Commissions can take a few months to complete….the larger the commission the longer it takes!

Development of a Portrait in Oils: ‘The Surgeon and the Crocodile’

Above: Tonal studies in oil of Steve Mannion, Founder and Director of Feet First Worldwide.

Development of a Portrait in Oils:

‘Mercy’ Feet First Project Coordinator (Malawi)

Prints of this oil painting are available for sale at Art Of Giving with part of the proceeds going to the charity.

At this stage the painting is still more or less a tonal study with a bit of colour introduced. I like my work at this stage and often wish I did not have to take it any further! You can see I have added more Foundation White to the background to add a bit of contrast for the .

This is how any artwork starts...as a simple tonal study with some Foundation White added.

I am passionate about my work as a wildlife artist and am dedicated to trying to find ways of showing the wonder of animals living in their natural habitats.

With such a love of wildlife and having enjoyed so many experiences in my travels around the world  of seeing animals living in their natural habitats,  I find that I am compelled to create artwork of it all.   Whether it is for exhibition or on commission, the journey of trying to tell a story in a painting and endeavouring to create something that looks as if it could come to life and step off the picture remains a challenge that I enjoy taking on over and over again.

Commissioning a wildlife painting may not sound like the easiest thing to do……..but it does happen.  I am working on one now; a large five foot wide oil painting which will serve as a reminder of how lucky the client was to return home to the UK following an incident with  wildlife in Africa.  The canvas is a beautiful Belgium linen from Russell and Chapple (London) and I am using Michael Harding oil paints.

Spending eleven years in Kenya in my teens and early twenties was a magical experience. We; my folks and I and also friends and I, travelled to some truly amazing places.

Above; is a photo of my mum and I having breakfast  and watching wildlife ……quite a long time ago!  We were staying at a lodge in Tsavo Game Park in Kenya; one of my favourite places to visit.  We went there on many occasions and enjoyed watching the herds of elephant and also buffalo visit this waterhole.  I would slide carefully down the cliff with an old Mzee (who was a retired park ranger) and watch the elephant.

Below; The elephants were attracted by the water seeping out from the pump, for the bandas at the top of the cliff.

My logo (seen on the ‘Welcome’ page of this website) is a painting of one of the elephants that visited the waterhole and that I was able to watch for days on end, taking photos and sketching, where possible…not so easy balanced on the cliff!

Another favourite place was Lake Paradise in Marasabit where on one trip we even caught a glimpse of the mighty Ahmed (largest tusked elephant in Kenya).  We saw an eclipse of the sun in the desert outside Marsabit and for once the usually empty arid plains were littered with photographers from around the world! The desert was so ‘busy’ that I backed the combi into a rock trying to avoid a rather expensive camera set up on a tripod that I only saw at the last minute! Other fantastic trips included a week long drive with friends up to Lake Rudolf, bouncing the Landrovers over ‘moon rocks’ in dried up river beds as we travelled further north….and the atmospheric Aberdares where elephants crash through the forest and steep slopes, sometimes appearing suddenly on narrow tracks you are driving along!

Some time later I lived in Johanesburg in South Africa …where I met my Lancastrian husband through mutual friends from Kenya.  We both loved traveling around the country, visiting some truly beautiful parts such as the magnificent  Garden Route and magical Knysna. The Cape was magnificent…but a real favourite was Londolozi Game Lodge where we ended up feet from lions on the kill in an open top Landrover…I am not a fan of open top vehicles in game parks!

I loved living in Africa and am grateful for the wonderful memories and experiences I have had over the years.  I also saw the difficulties and challenges some people face living there.  When our son was born in Johannesburg, my husband and I left South Africa, unwilling to live any longer in a country with Apartheid.  I have written a novel, a political thriller (unpublished) as a direct result of spending many happy years living in Kenya and then  seeing the effects of Apartheid in South Africa.  Happily, times have changed and recently our daughter spent two wonderful weeks traveling around South Africa with friends.

My experiences have left me with a love of Africa and a determination to use my artwork to help charities.

I now live in the Lytham St Annes in the North West (UK) and love being able to go down onto the beach with the dog, enjoying the feeling of space!  I like big skies and the views out to sea.  It reminds me of the time spent in Africa, enjoying the vast spaces .

Where possible I use my artwork to support the following charities that work in Africa, amongst other areas of the world:

BORN FREE FOUNDATION

TUSK

FEET FIRST WORLDWIDE