Working with deep-seated memories of the landscapes that are embedded in her psyche, Ione Harrison’s paintings evoke the spirit of the place of the beautiful North York Moors, and Howardian Hills .
ABOUT
Biography
Working from her studio in Welburn YO60 7EP, North Yorkshire, Ione Harrison creates vibrant, atmospheric paintings. Using experimental techniques to create rich textures – such as wax resist, textiles and plants - Ione’s work explores themes of landscape and the natural world.
Ione earned her degrees at Oxford Brookes University, Bath University and Bath Spa University. Even though life’s practicalities led her to pursue a professional career in teaching, Ione has always felt deeply creative. Many years of international travel as a teacher (France, the Middle East, Turkey, Nepal) sharpened her perceptions about how landscape shapes lives and deepened her relationship with colour. She has been influenced in particular by the heat-soaked colours of Asia and the Middle East.
Recently, Ione returned to her home county and feels revitalised and rooted once more in the beautiful North York Moors landscape.
She has exhibited widely in her home region of Yorkshire, and has been represented by galleries in Helmsley, Leeds and York.
Artist Statement
"Painting mainly in watercolour and ink, my art is inspired by the natural world around me. My paintings capture the ever-changing light and mood of moor, hill, woodland and coastline.
With a semi-abstract, expressionistic quality to my art, I paint mainly with colours in a minor key, rather than the main points of the colour spectrum, accented with inky vibrancy, to realise a sense of shape, colour, pattern and texture. This evokes a spiritual truth present in the landscape - deeply embedded in nostalgia and my sense of place.
Drawing on inspiration from both my childhood in North Yorkshire and my travels around the globe as an international teacher, I incorporate the rich heat-soaked colours of the Middle East and Asia to create atmospheric interpretations of landscape.
Drawn to the sense of solitude and the divine in wild landscapes, my work conjures the simplicity and elemental quality of earth and sea, transforming rock, shape and colour into vibrant art.
I still work as a teacher and now also lead painting workshops for adults. I absolutely love sharing my own discoveries about painting and how this can lead us to re-interpret the landscape around us.
I feel privileged to be able to share the joy of wonderful watercolour with you and look forward to welcoming you into my world."
