Chinoiserie was introduced to Europe during the 17th and 18th centuries.
With a blend of Eastern and Western style features, furniture, interiors, tapestries and objet d’art carried fantastic motifs portraying idealised oriental scenery with exotic birds, dragons, flowers, figures, pagodas and the most intricate lattice work. The fascination and fantasies grew rapidly as the far Eastern trade expanded.

Chinoiserie was introduced to me at a much later date, when one day a friend brought a small painted cabinet to my studio. She was going to throw it away but thought it was something I might be interested in. Underneath 5 or 6 layers of thick pink gloss paint there was the slightest suggestion of raised patterns.  Several rough attempts had been made to discover what laid beneath resulting in much damage. 
 If I wanted it, it was mine to do with it whatever I could.
Weeks of work and research followed (Chinoiserie is incredibly time consuming) as I carefully lifted the crude, gloss surface, gradually exposing the most exquisite gilt flora and fauna relief’s, raised against dramatic, painted mountain scenes. With much care I was able to keep any further damage to the absolute minimum and almost all the original skillfully laid gold leaf was saved.  
That was the beginning of an ongoing and fascinating journey. Working on such a beautiful object had aroused my curiosity. 

More and more research went into the finishes, subjects and techniques that make up the basis of these highly decorative pieces, until I was able to reproduce them accurately leading to the design of new work and textiles, and the restoration of valuable items, including museum pieces, from lacquered long case clocks to ornamented mirror frames  oriental cabinets and small items such as tea caddies and jewellery boxes. 
A fascinating art, a fascinating journey.

Above is a restored 18th c clock door, and below are more examples of my Chinoiserie work.. Click here to go to my Chinoiserie page on the website, where you can discover more about restoration of antique items up to museum standard, or commissioning new designs for the modern home or product.

New Years Eve, I can never stay up, and I always take down the tree on New Year’s Day.

It is not bah humbug! It is certainly not that I don’t love to see the tree, I do.  I love it, I love the welcoming glow, the warmth of the colours, the memories, the beautifully wrapped gifts, I am always excited and can’t wait to decorate when it comes to December, and Kit and I do put the tree up a few days early.

But, for me, they have to be gone before beginning a new year, carefully wrapped and stored, or I find they impede fresh inspiration, and leftover decorations that move into the New Year seem slightly dingy and out of place. A clean palette I suppose.
I have so many ideas racing around my head as I go into my studio (tidied before Christmas), the clean surfaces beckoning for some kind of greatness.  The jugs and jars neatly stacked, brushes cleaned, paper tidy.

Of course the normal run of ‘Calls for entries’ dictate to a degree, and have to be planned, but what else will I create before the tree goes up again?  I’m excited!

Have a Happy, Healthy, Inspirational and Creative New Year!!
Yours warmly, Gloria.

Breathing a sigh of relief , I stand back to assess the row of drying prints .... the result of a morning running at maximum power, but I am pleased with the results of the new limited edition of classical Iberian horsemen. They threw up a few testing problems, as I wanted to keep the image clear and iconic  (a busier subject can often be, surprisingly, more straightforward) and was so happy to be working with my old cast iron press which gave me a denser ink surface. I used Zerkall rag paper rather than my often favoured Tosa Washi or Shoji paper which works so well with the bamboo baren. 


In these designs I wanted to capture the beauty and romance that I saw in these riders, to encapsulate the  dedication and quietude  of being totally in touch with oneself and ones horse. I wanted to prevent them becoming esoteric, and to be simply pleasing to the eye for anyone who looked at them, and whilst having that quality of early drawings of classical horsemanship, I wanted to give them a modern feel, making them relevant to today. 

I have a special love of Classical riding since being introduced to it in the early 80's when I bought my first wonderful Lusitano horse from Lord and Lady Loch at their beautiful Stoke by Clare School in Suffolk.
I was fortunate to be able to visit often and ride at their school for the next few years, and went on to keep my own Lusitanos.. a stallion, a gelding and 2 lovely mares. Thrilled that one or two of the foals I bred are still out there. 
                                                                                                                                     Warm wishes, Gloria.

The Iberian horse for me has been a passion, a much overused term now perhaps, but nonetheless it has, and I can think of no other.
 
The history and theatre afforded these legendary horses is a gift to the artist. 

No need for fantasy, or false embellishments, they have a natural flamboyance that is almost mythical. The large, dark, deep set eyes speak of centuries ... of an ancient world, of courage, knowledge and loyalty. 


I have been lucky to know them as my friends, my mounts, my companions ,and my models. 

Not wishing to portray such nobility in a mawkish way that insults or diminishes , I have attempted to capture a sense of  classicism , at others the ephemeral qualities , or the quietude , but always wishing to achieve gravitas.                                                                    
                                             

I am taking time to reflect my work of the past,  and feel privileged to have been commissioned to paint for interiors where there is a demand for large scale works, and  was able to fulfil my desire to paint epic pieces often on 8ft to 17 ft  canvases etc. Now I am  planning to do more large scale, allegorical work..... time to return with a new perspective. 

Today I revisited the home of the Welborne herd of English Longhorn cattle belonging to Lt Col and Mrs Hodges, delivering 'a well overdue' drawing to say thank you for their generosity in allowing me to sit in their fields for long hours at a time.

It was a moving and somewhat cathartic experience. It was some 10 years since I was last there, and amongst the lovely herd of 10, I think only one cow....Delia.... remained of those I had sat with, drawn and grew so fond of.

This new herd consists of sons and daughters of my old favourites who have appeared many times in my work over the years, dear Challenger the bull... teddy bear like, soft and gentle, my favourite model. Archie, the huge, sweet natured ox,  Garbo, with amazing and instantly recognisable horns, Coco  the beautiful young bull who had been vigilantly nursed back to health after breaking a horn, Delia with her small calf, and Lancelot the youngster who interfered constantly, ate my pencils, paints and tipped everything over.

It was so wonderful to be there again, amongst this primeval breed, whose energy is very different from the domesticated bulls that I grew up with. I feel close to nature, peaceful and untroubled when in their presence.....but for now, this marks a lull in my Bull era.