Carin is widely known for her bold dynamic watercolours of our natural world. She also works with graphite and pastels and writes poetry.
Her work has attracted international recognition and been licensed for Christmas cards. She has a strong commissions-following and exhibits regularly. Born and raised in England, she now lives in Melbourne Australia. Painting for social impact In addition to painting to give people joy, Carin raises community awareness of important subjects through her works. She says "Art has the ability to move, inspire and support. I'm very lucky to be able to help others through my paintings". |
Carrying forward creative heritage
Creativity runs throughout Carin's family. Her maternal Norwegian grandmother was related to composer Edvard Grieg and her grandmother's cousin was poet, novelist and activist Nordahl Grieg. Her great aunt Ellen Grieg is a textile artist, Carin's mother, Lise, a glass engraver and her uncle a published photographer and author. Her maternal grandfather’s uncle was Maori-portrait-artist Harry Linley Richardson, and her great grandfather Royal Academy lithographic artist George Richardson. In Carin's father's family, with Irish ancestors from County Down, there is a story of a link to artist Sir John Lavery. Carin feels a close connection with her ancestors and enjoys that her nephew Tom is continuing this creative lineage through the pursuit of his musical talents.
A love affair with watercolour
Carin feels an innate calling to communicate nature - in all its forms - through the challenging medium of watercolour. She started painting in her 50s and says “Picking up my brushes is when I feel most real. It is who I am".
Her painting style is varied and dynamic; sometimes realist, sometimes abstract or impressionistic; mirroring the unpredictable ever-changing flow of our natural world. Describing her painting as 'a love affair with watercolour' Carin paints intuitively, sometimes using a mix of strong colours; at other times, creating a monochromatic image. Her paintings open a window to nature for others to experience. Her purpose is to express what she sees and bring pleasure and meaning to others through her work.
Carin enjoys challenging the traditional perceptions of how people perceive watercolours, breaking new ground in size and the vibrant use of colour. Her painting Magical Colours of Port Phillip Bay spanned 91 inches (130 cm) by 31 inches (100 cm).
Since 2016 Carin has been a student of internationally recognised award-winning Australian watercolour artist David Taylor.
Nature through life drawing
In addition to capturing nature through the medium of watercolour, Carin expresses the raw and powerful form of the human body through her minimalist pastel and graphite drawings. Quick, expressive and fresh, her intention is to convey with authenticity the ‘place’ humans have, equal to other aspects of nature.
Carin says “We are nature ourselves. To me, we have the same importance as a cloud, the sea or our trees. The style of my life drawings intentionally conveys our essence, rather than our detail”.
Poetry
Carin also connects with others through words, crafting her insights about happy and challenging subjects into her poems. She readily shares them in the hope that they benefit others and help them to connect with their own experiences. Carin uses words in the same way in which she paints, with a sense of directness, urgency and punch. Sometimes they convey peace, such as her poem ‘Thank You Nature’, sometimes examples of trauma from her life’s circumstances and experiences.
She feels that expressing life’s challenges through words is synonymous with visually conveying nature’s storms or the power of crashing waves in her paintings.
Creativity runs throughout Carin's family. Her maternal Norwegian grandmother was related to composer Edvard Grieg and her grandmother's cousin was poet, novelist and activist Nordahl Grieg. Her great aunt Ellen Grieg is a textile artist, Carin's mother, Lise, a glass engraver and her uncle a published photographer and author. Her maternal grandfather’s uncle was Maori-portrait-artist Harry Linley Richardson, and her great grandfather Royal Academy lithographic artist George Richardson. In Carin's father's family, with Irish ancestors from County Down, there is a story of a link to artist Sir John Lavery. Carin feels a close connection with her ancestors and enjoys that her nephew Tom is continuing this creative lineage through the pursuit of his musical talents.
A love affair with watercolour
Carin feels an innate calling to communicate nature - in all its forms - through the challenging medium of watercolour. She started painting in her 50s and says “Picking up my brushes is when I feel most real. It is who I am".
Her painting style is varied and dynamic; sometimes realist, sometimes abstract or impressionistic; mirroring the unpredictable ever-changing flow of our natural world. Describing her painting as 'a love affair with watercolour' Carin paints intuitively, sometimes using a mix of strong colours; at other times, creating a monochromatic image. Her paintings open a window to nature for others to experience. Her purpose is to express what she sees and bring pleasure and meaning to others through her work.
Carin enjoys challenging the traditional perceptions of how people perceive watercolours, breaking new ground in size and the vibrant use of colour. Her painting Magical Colours of Port Phillip Bay spanned 91 inches (130 cm) by 31 inches (100 cm).
Since 2016 Carin has been a student of internationally recognised award-winning Australian watercolour artist David Taylor.
Nature through life drawing
In addition to capturing nature through the medium of watercolour, Carin expresses the raw and powerful form of the human body through her minimalist pastel and graphite drawings. Quick, expressive and fresh, her intention is to convey with authenticity the ‘place’ humans have, equal to other aspects of nature.
Carin says “We are nature ourselves. To me, we have the same importance as a cloud, the sea or our trees. The style of my life drawings intentionally conveys our essence, rather than our detail”.
Poetry
Carin also connects with others through words, crafting her insights about happy and challenging subjects into her poems. She readily shares them in the hope that they benefit others and help them to connect with their own experiences. Carin uses words in the same way in which she paints, with a sense of directness, urgency and punch. Sometimes they convey peace, such as her poem ‘Thank You Nature’, sometimes examples of trauma from her life’s circumstances and experiences.
She feels that expressing life’s challenges through words is synonymous with visually conveying nature’s storms or the power of crashing waves in her paintings.