Occupation / what medium do you work in? – I work in pencils, both coloured and graphite but graphite is my favourite medium.

How did you become an artist (maybe you always have been) / are you self-taught or have you studied in a particular field? – I am self taught. I have always enjoyed drawing and it’s always been something I can do. I have been drawing pet portraits for about 8 years now but have only recently started producing original drawings for sale.

Have you exhibited your work / where have you exhibited your work? – I have exhibited work locally at Watten, Thurso, Latheron and Halkirk and have just recently had a drawing accepted into the Society of Equestrian Artists 2012 Horse in Art exhibition in London.

What inspires / motivates you? – I am inspired by images I see and things going on around me. I’ll look at photo and think ‘that would make a nice drawing’. Black and white drawings need texture and contrast to make them interesting so I look for those things when taking or looking for reference photos. The motivation comes from people liking what I do! A satisfied customer or lots of lovely comments on Facebook gives me the enthusiasm to draw something else. And like any artist I’m always trying to do something better than I’ve done before!

Are there common themes in your work / what are they? – Animals! Most of my drawings are pet portrait commissions but even when not doing commissions I draw a lot of horses. For my original drawings I like to try and do something a bit different with interesting compositions.

Who is your favourite artist + why? – Oh there are so many! I love looking at art. I love hyperrealism. There is an artist called Jason de Graaf who paints awesome reflections and water. His paintings are like photographs they are that detailed but they’re more than photographs because they are so vivid and intense and he focuses on detail that you wouldn’t see in a photograph. I also admire anyone who can draw / paint from their imagination – I follow an artist’s blog (ziggyshortcrust.wordpress.com) who draws elves and dragons and they’re absolutely gorgeous and all done entirely from her imagination.

What has been the highlight of your career so far? – In 2010 I entered two drawings into the Watten Art and Craft Exhibition, which was my very first time putting anything into an exhibition. When I went to collect my drawings when it had finished I had sold both of them. That was a really exciting moment and really boosted my confidence and enthusiasm.

Which work are you most proudest of + why? – It has to be “Connection”. This is the drawing that has been accepted into the Horse in Art exhibition mentioned before. It is a juried exhibition and the first time I’ve been confident enough to enter anything so I was so pleased when it was accepted.

What are your hopes for the future? – I’ve just recently started getting giclee prints professionally printed from some of my originals and made some cards featuring my art so I would like to develop that further. I also have ideas of drawings of other subjects I’d like to explore. I love old, falling down buildings so they are on the list of subjects to try along with people. And I have a whole folder of potential reference photos on my computer to keep me busy for years to come!!

I was really pleased with myself getting in there and it has generated quite a lot of local interest including two commissions so definitely worth doing.