Artist statement
Mix a watercolourist, a degree in wildlife and environmental photography and a love for birds, and sometimes, the magic happens!
Heather spends many an hour in the dunes overlooking an estuary, or walking out with the receding tide over mudflats, watching for the moment when the light and nature create a potential image.
Prints, cards, sketchbooks plus
Extended Bio
Lancashire born - from an early age Heather showed an interest in both birds and aeroplanes. So despite the distractions of boarding school, catering college and music college, maybe it was a predictable life’s path that ensued
Learning to fly gliders at 16 she then followed a circuitous route to her final goal. In the RAF she was an airframe technician on fighter bombers, an air traffic control officer and finally an imagery analyst. Women were not allowed to fly in the RAF in those days.
Leaving the RAF, Heather attained her Commercial Pilot’s Licence and later her Air Transport Pilot’s Licence. She flew turboprops for Loganair and then various Boeings with British Airways, destinations included Wick and Kirkwall, USA, India, Middle East and pretty well the whole of Europe . She was one of the first twenty women to fly for BA. Sadly after 13 years this career was curtailed due to illness and another passion had to be found.
A longed for, ’once in a life-time’ trip to Antarctica resulted in four more lengthy trips South. Drawing, painting and keeping a sketchbook and drawing cartoons were already lifelong pursuits. The unimaginable, inspirational icescapes and glorious wildlife of Antarctica set alight the new passion and subsequently Heather completed a BA(Hons) in Wildlife and Environmental Photography.
From this life of considerable excitement and adventure was born the solitary pursuit of making the camera work as a palette, out in the landscape. Heather does not consider herself a photographer and indeed many images are mistaken for paintings.
Working with waders, for her, the joy is hours of observation, perched on a dune or riverbank, catching sudden flurries of action or spotting a moment of serenity when light and animals oblige.
Her work is not solely bird based. She has worked with captive sea lions, vegetables! (RHS silver gilt medal), electric pylons, icebergs and much more.
Heather also gives workshops in art subjects, designs logos and draws cartoons
