Cornwall Open Studios 2019

Hurrah! I’m doing Open Studios in May 2019.

I will share a great space - the Reading Room in Bolventor, opposite Jamaica Inn at the heart of Bodmin Moor - with the wonderful textile artist Adam Halls (@adam.halls.art on Instagram). I’ve chosen this image to appear in the Cornwall Open Studios 2019 catalogue so I thought it would be nice to share the story behind it with you.

I visited the steamy rainforests of Borneo on one of my many inspiring trips (with rucksack and sketchbook) and discovered this charming baby orangutan. It was in Sepilok Orangutan Rehabilitation Centre in Sabah, Malaysia, where great work is being done to save the population from poachers and release them back into the wild.

I was fascinated by these creatures which look so human and made them the subject of my drawings. I went on to develop the design into a contemporary textile hanging, which in turn became a luxury hand-woven poncho, supersoft to the touch and reminiscent in its textures of the orangutan fur and the mottled shade of the forest foliage.

I hope people will feel a connection and raise awareness of the plight of these wonderful animals.