Sue Higginson-Bell
Sue Higginson-Bell is an award-winning artist who wants nothing more than to live in a hut in the wilderness surrounded by wildlife. She grew up in the Pennines on the Durham – Northumberland border, and in spite of being pushed towards science, she eventually studied art in Lancashire gaining a first class degree from the same place as Andy Goldsworthy (not at the same time, unfortunately!), and she now lives in a little cottage in Scotland, in a village to the north of the Tweed.
Sue loves drawing and painting the amazing creatures and wild plants we share our world with and enjoys a long walk to discover new wild places and the magical moments to be found off the beaten track. Sue believes the world is full of wonders if you take the time to be quiet and patient and look around you.
The works here are some of the wonders Sue has encountered on her journeys around the peaceful places of the Northern countryside, coast and beyond, as well as some special feathered friends from the Bird Gardens Scotland CIC who rescue rare species and contribute to worldwide conservation breeding programs to help prevent extinctions. A donation will be made to the Bird Gardens for every original and print sold featuring one of their beautiful birds. (They’re the exotic looking ones!)
All of Sue’s work is of creatures and places she’s experienced herself and she works exclusively from her own sketches and reference photographs (and sometimes her partner’s because he has a longer lens!).
For a glimpse of Sue’s previous artistic adventures and wildlife encounters please see the display in the glass cabinet. If you want to find out more about Sue, her creative processes, and the stories
behind the works you can see here and more, you can find Sue on Instagram
Tina Holley
Tina Holley was told at school that art wasn’t for her. At that time abstraction and impressionism were all the rage and Tina’s interest in realism meant a firm pair of hands steered her away from art to Latin and Ancient Greek. So, no art for Tina as she deemed herself talentless until her mid-forties when home-educating two brilliant children meant access and excuse to play with paint,
which she found she really enjoyed. And so, fortunately, did other people leading her to selling the third painting she completed and having her first solo exhibition six months after first picking up a paintbrush.
Tina has shown her work in solo and group exhibitions across the UK and has produced work for organisations such as The National Trust and the RSPB. She has an international following having
worked on commissions in Europe and also having been artist in residence in the Petrified Forest National Park, Arizona and again at Rocky Mountain National Park, Colorado where she also served as a jurist for the Artist in Residence Programme. Tina has also had a solo exhibition in the International Museum of Art in El Paso, Texas.
Tina now lives in the Scottish Borders whilst still having a gallery in N.Wales where she and her family lived for a number of years. Her work is known for attention to detail and also for Tina’s fascination with light in the landscape. Among her favourite subjects are water and trees, both of which are featured in this exhibition.
