Birmingham isn’t just a city – it’s a living pulse. Rain-slicked streets, neon-lit corners, and the shimmer of wet tarmac under streetlamps all inspire my artistic practice. Although now based in Stratford-upon-Avon, I have lived and worked within Birmingham for a long time and have spent years capturing this city, not through landmarks but through light, motion, and atmosphere.
My paintings — semi-abstract cityscapes in oils, mixed media, and inks — are emotive portraits of Birmingham as it evolves. To me, it’s never still. It lives and breathes through colour, contrast, and reflection.
The City That Moves You
My first encounter with Birmingham at night was unforgettable. Standing by the ring roads during rush hour, the blare of horns and blazing lights surrounded me. Figures passed in silhouette. The city felt like a stage —dramatic, alive.
I began photographing Birmingham at twilight and after dark, using long exposures to turn vehicles into streaks of light and crowds into ghostly forms. These photographs became the foundation for my paintings — not to replicate, but to evoke the restless heartbeat of the city.
Layers of Light, Texture, and Story
I’m drawn to transitional moments: when daylight fades and artificial lights take over, when rain transforms streets into mirrors, when traffic bursts from an underpass, trailing sparks of light. These scenes pulse with emotional intensity.
Rain becomes a co-creator in my work. It stretches and distorts light and structure, blending street with sky. I often paint wet-on-wet, layering thick oil paint with palette knives, then scratching or wiping it away to mimic the fluidity of water and light.
In Queensway, arcs of traffic in gold and vermilion pulse through darkness, capturing the tension of a city constantly in motion. My palette reflects this duality: cool greys and blues echo Birmingham’s industrial side, while flashes of neon pink, chrome, and glowing yellow bring it into the now.
Each canvas begins with very thin spontaneous washes that breathe into the final oil surface, creating depth and unpredictability.
Birmingham as Muse
What fascinates me most is Birmingham’s layered identity. Proudly industrial yet forward-looking, it’s a place where brutalist landmarks sit beside gleaming towers, and canals weave through concrete and glass.
Two structures appear often in my work: the Signal Box and the Radisson Blu. The Signal Box becomes a brooding silhouette in Nocturn Intersection II, painted in rich blues and deep greys—a tribute to concrete’s raw poetry. Meanwhile, the Radisson Blu in Radisson Blu reflects fading skies, its glass shimmering with warmth as traffic snakes below.
These are not postcard scenes. They are emotional memories—filtered through time and feeling.
Painting Atmosphere and Motion
I don’t paint on location. Instead, I paint using my slow-motion photographs and personal experiences — the sounds of buses, brake lights glowing in mist, and the feeling of isolation in a crowd. These impressions form the heart of my work.
With blurred edges, drips, layered textures, and often a heightened colour palette, I create a cinematic feel. Each painting captures a scene mid-movement—fading in or about to begin. That ambiguity invites viewers in, allowing them to find their own story within the brushstrokes.
Collectors often tell me my work changes how they see Birmingham. Suddenly, a familiar road or building becomes something cinematic. The everyday commute becomes poetry in motion.
The Artist Behind the Canvas
I studied at Goldsmiths and then Central Saint Martins in London, where I was tasked with capturing the energy of the city. These elements of vitality and motion have remained an integral part of my work, whether through painting dynamic swimmers, circus performers, dancers, or the commuters and traffic within the urban environment.
I also continue to learn and evolve my ideas through lived experience: endless hours observing, walking, and absorbing the city.
As a female artist in a genre often focused on architectural detail, I bring a more emotional lens. My paintings explore the interplay between presence and absence, as well as motion and stillness. They are less about structure, more about soul.
Final Thoughts
Cities change with time, light, weather, and people. As an artist, I capture those fleeting moments and distil their energy onto canvas. Birmingham builds, reinvents, and reflects, and my work tries to do the same.
