Why Art Matters: A Personal Reflection on Making and Connection

Art, for me, is a way of returning to myself, to memory, and to the spaces that exist between things. When I make, I slow down. Mixing colour, stitching paper, arranging forms or pulling a print brings me back to a sense of balance. In a world that moves fast, creating reminds me of my own preferences. It encourages me to make choices that feel mine alone.

Art connects me to myself. Through making, I rediscover the shapes, textures and colours that feel familiar. These choices aren’t calculated; they come from instinct and from the subtle pull of what feels right. Creating becomes a form of listening, a way to pay attention to what I actually think and feel.

It also connects me to my past. Much of my work draws on early memories, fragments of landscape, gardens, and the rhythm of domestic making. When I stitch paper together, I think of my mum and my grandma: their sewing, their care, the persistence of working with their hands. Each thread feels like a link back through time, carrying a sense of family and place.

Making art helps me make sense of the world. It turns the fleeting into something tangible, such as light across a surface, a half‑remembered moment or the texture of age. In painting and printmaking, I work through layering and reworking. That process allows me to reflect, question, and understand what I see.

There is also the simple act of creating something beautiful, when I feel I've achieved this, it's so empowering.

Art matters because it reminds us that we are attentive and connected. It ties us to ourselves, to each other and to the world around us, at least that's how I see it.

Why does art matter to you? Email me I'd love to hear from you!