Watercolour by Veronica Charlesworth.
Forest Floor
Veronica Charlesworth
Veronica Charlesworth was born in London, England in 1952. Her family were not in the least artistic but from an early age Veronica developed a love of and a skill at drawing and painting. Her foundation studies at Hampton Art School provided her with excellent tuition in drawing and design and at the London College of Printing she learned the techniques of printmaking and obtained a BA in Graphic Design.
In 1974 Veronica began her career as a professional artist and became the manager of a printmaking workshop in London producing silk screen prints and lithographs by herself and fellow artists. In 1979 she married the artist, Michael MacDonagh Wood and together they set up a printmaking studio in Stroud Gloucestershire printing their etchings and silk screen prints.
During the late 80s Veronica began painting in watercolours. "I had enjoyed drawing plants at art school but watercolour was a new medium for me. It is perfectly suited to working in the open air and I used it to paint my favourite flowers, peonies, poppies and particularly irises." Veronica's vibrant paintings capture the delicate fragility and intense colours of these spectacular flowers which she exhibited annually at the Chelsea Flower show and the Hampton Court Flower Show.
In 2003 Michael and Veronica bought a house in the idyllic Lot region of France resulting in many scenes of ancient villages and farms.
More recently, Veronica organised an exhibition to celebrate Stroud's award winning farmers market. "I aimed to show the beauty and variety of our local produce throughout the 4 seasons. The project was great fun. I loved searching for the most visually exciting fruit and vegetables and then arranging an interesting composition for each month of the year."
Veronica and Michael moved to South Devon in 2016 and she has found a new source of inspiration. Slapton Ley at Start Bay and the River Dart are her present subjects. "I am fascinated by the relationship between the trees and the water and spend a long time studying their reflections. The shore line is my territory."
Whether still life, floral or landscape, Veronica's watercolours and acrylics celebrate the beauty and drama of the natural world.
Watercolour
58x68cm
Framed Under Glass