Statement
I've been a practising artist for 35 years. I'm predominantly self-taught and don't hold any formal art qualifications. Initially working in textiles and then moving into illustration, in recent years I’ve settled on painting as my preferred medium. I work with acrylics on panel, canvas and paper, often incorporating other media to create surfaces with depth and texture. An intuitive use of colour has always been central to my practice. My painting combines figurative and abstract elements with the human form taking centre stage. An abiding interest in psychology and the subtexts of human interaction fuel my subject matter. What I hope to stir in the viewer is an emotional resonance and a reminder of our shared humanity.
History
I’m named after the Bob Dylan song ‘Corrina, Corrina’. Currently living and working in Nottingham, UK. Originally from the village of Newhey (now New Hey) near Rochdale, Lancashire.
I was an only child with artist parents. Although I was good at art I ended up on a European Studies degree course at Hull University in 1987. I fancied the year living abroad but I dropped out of the course before that happened. I’m not academic in the slightest and the course bored and depressed me.
I went on the Enterprise Allowance Scheme in 1989, I was painting fabric and making it into cushion covers. In 1991 I moved to Hebden Bridge and spent a few weeks on a foundation course at Rochdale Art College where I learned how to do machine embroidery and that’s what I ended up doing for the next 14 years. Eventually I grew frustrated with sewing and fancied printmaking. However that required space and equipment that wasn’t available to me, so I bought a small graphics tablet and taught myself digital drawing with the aim of printing my own greeting cards.
For the for the next 10 years I worked as an independent greeting card publisher, doing the trade shows, getting agents, even landing a publishing deal. However the appeal of drawing on a screen started to wear thin and I realised I needed to create in a more hands-on, visceral way. I’ve always liked to paint and I felt the urge to do more. In 2018 I started doing more painting and wound down the card business.