Born in Leicestershire

Moved to London 1980. Consultant and demonstrator for Winsor & Newton Artists' Materials

2007- Summer School Foundation, Slade School of Fine Art University College London

2007-2008 BTEC HNC Fine Art at Kensington & Chelsea College

2008- 2011 BA ( Hons) Fine Art Sir John Cass Fine Art London Metropolitan University.

2015- Living in Quorn  Leicestershire.

Membership of the following Societies:

Society of Fulham Artists and Potters  1994- 2015

Artists in Public Service 2012-

London Print Studio  2012- 2014

Leicester Sketch Club 2016-

Artist statement:

Painting has been a part of my life for over five decades. I was greatly inspired by the paintings of my grandfather who focused on still life and portraiture, predominantly using oil paint. My journey began exploring painting, drawing and printmaking.

At the beginning of the 80s I worked for Winsor&Newton Artists’ Materials as a consultant and demonstrator until 2007 when I retired. I had many opportunities during my time working for W&N, experimenting and promoting their immense range of different materials. I gained great knowledge and insight into how the products were made and enjoyed working with colours, leading me to develop a particular fondness of watercolour, when demonstrating techniques and their various effects.

Once I retired I continued my investigations into painting with experimental methods. I undertook many courses across five years: the first, a Foundation course at the Slade School of Fine Art, University College, London; then on to Kensington & Chelsea College and finally Sir John Cass, Fine Art University of London Metropolitan.

I am incredibly inspired by the work of Prunella Clough, Winifred Nicholson, Sheila Fell, Ivon Hitchens, Peter Lanyon, Patrick Heron and David Jones. And perhaps unsurprisingly,  the watercolours of J.M.W. Turner, which hold a dear and firm place in my heart.

In my practice, I make observations from the natural environment directly into my sketchbook. The work investigates atmospheric phenomena that occur from the forces of nature and the changes these elements make to the environment. The images are then explored by conveying space, light, shadow, fractal patterns and the immediacy of marks made on the surface of paper which I then develop into paintings. I work with different mediums, my preferred medium is watercolour due to its fluidity, transparency and luminosity.

I am currently developing a series of watercolours inspired by waterlogged fields 2023/24 near to where I live in Leicestershire. The focus of attention is connected with the  surrounding areas of flooded fields and the River Soar; concentrating on the movement, light and reflections on the water. Another ongoing series of paintings I am working on  concern ‘Volcanic Eruptions’, and are inspired by the Grindavik volcano eruptions of 2023/24 in the area of Fagradalsfjall, Iceland.

Beryl Touchard