Christina Mingard of Hawthorn Cottage Industry loves colour and texture and finds that playing music whilst painting changes her mood and therefore the palette from which she works. The result is a bright and contemporary take on a traditional subject like the landscape. 

We speak to Christina to find out 'Where it all started'.

"I began my career as an illustrator, working for publishers in Europe and Africa.  Somewhere out there are lots of black and white drawings of agriculture and bright children's book illustrations.  These now seem to belong to a former life, before my own children were born".  

Since moving to rural Northumberland, your painting has developed dramatically.

"Yes it certainly has, from still lives and oil paint, to landscapes and acrylics.  I prefer to use a medium which allows me to work wholly from life.  The wilder parts of Northumberland are my favourites and I can sometimes be seen, standing outside my VW Caravelle painting in all weathers.  Occasionally, the weather has been so bad, that even acrylics have not been able to dry fast enough to stop the rain washing them off the canvas"!  

You also work 'indoors' as well as 'outdoors'.  I believe this was the inspiration for one of your exhibitions.  

"This year, as 'artist in residence' at the Gallery Upstairs, Village Bakery, Melmerby in Cumbria, I have been able to work indoors using the view as inspiration.  However, once the flowers that she and her husband grew for their daughter's wedding started to bloom, they also began to appear in front of the landscapes.  These paintings now form the core of her exhibition for the Christmas Art Tour + November 24-25th and December 1- 2nd".   

Christina has been asked to extend her residency for a further twelve months and will exhibit some of the results there in February 2008.

Christina and her husband Paul, make part of their living by publishing their own giclee prints and making greetings cards by hand.  

As members of Aurora Christina and Paul have taken their company, Hawthorn Cottage Industry to sell at Trade Shows supported by the project and hope to expand outside of the UK in the coming years.

Visit Hawthorn Cottage Industry site by clicking here.

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