ARTIST

Statement

'Beneath the surface of every artwork lies a quiet, hidden world—layers of paint, erased thoughts, and private moments that belong entirely to the maker. Art acts as a vault for the parts of ourselves we choose to keep safe. The human condition is a landscape of contradictions: we are simultaneously open and guarded, carrying complex emotions that the world rarely sees. For me, making art is a way to measure these feelings, unload their weight, or simply give them a place to settle.
Ultimately, when a piece enters the world, it carries its emotional honesty with it. Whether a viewer consciously deciphers the hidden layers or simply feels a subtle tug of connection, the work serves its purpose: reminding us that behind what is visible, a shared human experience is quietly waiting to be felt.'


Background

Jody is a contemporary artist living and working in Kent. Since graduating from Central St Martins with a BA in Fine Art in 2012, her practice has evolved through a continuous exploration of media, concept, and form. Early work—spanning 4D film, installation, and mixed media—interrogated notions of truth, documentation, and the mediation of reality, which is still intrinsic to much of her current practice albeit investigated through a 2D medium.

 

After graduation, Jody collaborated with the Artist Collective - Cross Arts Projects (XAP) - all Alumni of Central Saint Martins at Yinke Shonibare's Guest Projects in London and a number of other shows collectively before completing an artist residency at Tonbridge School in Kent, culminating in a solo exhibition called Imprints.

 

Jody's life as an artist is deeply grounded in her family, having raised four independent adult children with her husband who remain a central focus in her life, she has now returned to the studio to resume her artistic practice in a collective space near Tunbridge Wells alongside a dynamic community of artists and makers.

Today, Jody's core focus primarily centres on abstract painting rooted in memory, atmosphere, and intuitive colour relationships. This direction was profoundly shaped by a recent croft renovation project on the West Coast of the Scottish Highlands, where the shifting light, rugged terrain, and open skies rekindled her deep connection to place and the emotional resonance of landscapes and the passing of time, translating physical environments and emotional memories into rich, luminous, and layered visual poems - inviting the viewer not just to look at her paintings but to inhabit and experience the atmosphere and emotion conveyed through the colour and movement within the layering of paint, brushstrokes and drips.

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Although outwardly the colours and movement in her work convey a sense of calm and serenity—perhaps an idyllic sense of euphoria or a utopian imagined landscape—there are underlying themes of emotional unease. Barely visible, under-painted, and subtly layered, these elements suggest a world where not everything we experience is seen or noticed: a reflection of lived experience to which many can relate.