Anne Blundell

I grew up in what was a little fishing village on the outskirts of Southport, Lancashire. Our family house was third from the "Embankment" that held back the Irish Sea. My grandfather was a fisherman and Southport was famous for its potted shrimp. As a child I was allowed to wander along the embankment and onto the marsh often joined by Malcolm who many years later became my husband, and unsurprisingly he came from a family of fishermen. I attended Girls grammar school and became a Registered Nurse. After marrying I joined a local company and over the years became the head of a National Metrology Laboratory. Throughout my working career I painted seldom but always for friends and family. Both our children are artistic, although our daughter has utilised electronic media. Now our children have grown up I have been able to give up full time work and concentrate on painting. We have never lived far from the sea and always take sea/lakeside holidays, from the Lake District and Cornwall to the Canadian Great Lakes and the Gulf Coast of Florida. All of these have been a great inspiration. What influences my painting? I enjoy nature and wild countryside yet like to feel as happy and carefree as I did wandering the Marsh and climbing over old washed up boats. Painting naive waterside scenes is particularly satisfying as I can express myself in spirit of the story without the constraints of perspective or realistic hues, and enter a somewhat imaginative world where all can share in these holiday experiences and memories.