About me

Hi, I'm Natalie. I'm a mum, wife, retired midwife and artist based in the North East of England.

Creating and painting have always been a deep part of who I am. Ever since I was a little girl, I've been drawn to making things and telling stories through art. Bringing a story to life and evoking emotion through a painting gives me a real sense of peace and purpose, and knowing that something I have created has connected with someone else brings me so much joy.

Many years ago, before my beautiful children came along, I exhibited my artwork in galleries around the North East. But somewhere between motherhood and changes in my career, I used art and creating as a way to entertain and connect with my children, which brought me so much joy, rather than creating for myself.

My working life took several turns. I originally trained and worked as a graphic designer before moving into the NHS, where I spent many years working in healthcare. I eventually retrained as a midwife, qualifying in 2018, and later worked as a risk management midwife.

Then life changed direction again.

After years of balancing work, motherhood and family life alongside increasingly difficult health problems, I had no choice but to take ill-health retirement in March 2025. It was an incredibly difficult time. I grieved the career I had worked so hard for and struggled with the loss of purpose that came with it. I had no idea what beginning again was supposed to look like.

Then my local community centre announced its first-ever art competition.

I took it as a sign that something positive could happen if I pushed myself outside my comfort zone. So, after around fifteen years away from painting, I picked up my brushes again.

One thing led to another, and before I knew it, I was enrolling on the Milan Art Institute Mastery Programme.

What began as a creative outlet became something much more important. Art gave me somewhere to put the pain, grief, emotion and uncertainty I couldn't always find words for.

Alongside painting, I began writing poetry inspired by my work. Both have become ways to explore my sometimes messy inner world and understand myself a little better. Learning more about my own neurodivergence has also helped me understand the way I think, feel and create, and I'm slowly learning to look inward for the sense of worth I once searched for elsewhere.

My Art

My work has developed into a style I describe as abstract realism. I'm naturally drawn to nature, women and human connection.

I love expressive brushwork, movement, texture and areas that are allowed to remain loose or unresolved. For me, the feeling within a painting matters far more than photographic accuracy; we have amazing photographers for that.

Music is also a huge part of the way I work. I always paint with music playing, often classical, although my studio playlist can move through everything from Ray LaMontagne to Counting Crows. Music helps me loosen up, awaken the emotional part of my brain and paint more instinctively.

My paintings often explore identity, vulnerability, resilience, longing, healing and the strength we sometimes discover when life doesn't unfold quite as we expected.

Living with ME/CFS and thyroid cancer inevitably influences the way I see the world, but I don't want my health to define either me or my work.

My paintings are about much more than chronic illness or motherhood. They are about being human — struggling, adapting, loving, hoping, being neurodivergent, beginning again, and finding moments of beauty amongst the messier parts of life.

Returning to art has given me back something I thought I lost long ago.

Thank you for taking the time to read my story.

Whatever your own journey looks like, I hope you find something that brings you purpose, connection and a little bit of joy along the way.

Much love,
Natalie x