Hilary Eastment - South Wales. UK.

I was always very fond of drawing and painting when I was young, but it was later in life that I discovered how much I love this artform.  My professional career was halted due to health problems several years ago, drawing and painting was rekindled in me , it started as a form of therapy and I haven't put my pencils and paint brushes away since then. I am basically self taught except for some home study, and I am sure I will continue learning and enjoying making new discoveries each time I paint.

During my career, having studied and produced art in the form of cosmetic artistry, I recognise now that my professional background has greatly influenced one of my favourite subject choices (female beauty) and possibly my style, because I spent so many years enhancing the natural beauty of real females with cosmetic pencils and brushes for the camera, I now find myself inspired to create similar glamorous and realistic images through my drawings and paintings. I worked on many photo production sessions, and worked with the photographer on theme planning and set design, it proved useful at the time that I enjoyed drawing as I used to sketch out session plans which were used as story boards for guidance during productions.

Although I no longer work in the industry that I enjoyed for many years, drawing and painting has for sometime provided me with the perfect platform for creative expression. 'I don't feel that I want to draw and paint, I know I must draw and paint to feel complete!' To date my paintings have sold to private collectors in Europe, U.S.A. and Australia. My preferred medium for this subject is watercolour, although I do sometimes use oils and acrylics. I also enjoy drawing, and everything I paint is sketched out initially, sometimes in such detail that I've sometimes left some drawings to remain unpainted. I also draw and paint animals and birds, the natural beauty of our furry and feathered friends will never fail to inspire me, I hope to do more.

My abstract paintings are usually images relating to subjects of nature or designs and patterns that I've allowed my imagination to wander and create, for these I use large board or canvas using oil or acrylics, I really enjoy the freedom this theme allows, to be expressive with colour and movement, and I love trying out different mediums and experimenting with application methods. For me, drawing and painting is always a true pleasure...Hilary Eastment