An Artist in her Studio

Last month in LBL (life before lockdown) I did a photoshoot with artist Lesley Seeger in her studio at her home in North Yorkshire. I'd previously photographed Lesley in the landscape with her paints and brushes and her work propped up on a wheelbarrow as her easel.

On this latest occasion she was back in her studio, working on the finishing touches to her colourful and vivid paintings. Lesley's workplace is a beautiful airy, light-filled studio in her garden. From its large windows, there are panoramic views over the fields and countryside beyond that inspire her work.

There is no place for order and uniformity in her studio space. It's not the soulless images of perfection that we are often used to scrolling through on social media feeds. Rather, it is a delightfully chaotic jumble of paintbrushes, pots, rags, paper, wicker baskets, boxes and jars.

I get the feeling that it has to be this way. In order for an artist to become immersed in their creation, they need to detach from their surroundings, to allow themselves to create mess and to chop and change things around as their work evolves.

Taking photographs of Lesley at work was a fascinating insight into her creative process. I watched her become increasingly absorbed in her work, adding colours and changing tones of the sky, the trees, the fields and paths in her paintings until she is happy with the final image she has created.

This weekend Lesley, like many other Yorkshire artists would have been exhibiting her work at York Open Studios. But with the current lockdown due to the coronavirus crisis, this event was cancelled. Instead, I imagine Lesley will be in her studio or out in a field near her home, doing what she loves most, paintbrush in hand and paint palettes close by.

I have also photographed Lesley's paintings which are by far the most colourful images in my own photography portfolio...