Happy New Year!

Hi Everybody! Happy New Year to you all. What a year 2019 was...

The Bird Talks officially launched back in July with the arrival of the new website. It has been such an exciting year watching this acorn grow. The website has been a huge success, seeing regular users and customers revisiting the brand and investing in some fab, original art works. It's still a work in progress but I'm making changes all the time to make it more informative and functional for you, the users. With the introduction of the 'Events' page, I endeavour to keep you informed on what's new and upcoming for the year. I'm thrilled to tell you that the stock in my shop has been depleted more than once due to your greatly appreciated purchases. I've also been lucky enough to complete two commissions, with four more that I'm currently working on. My subscribers are increasing daily with lots of interest coming through social media platforms and I'm very excited to say my reviews page is looking plentiful with your wonderful words and faces next to your paintings.

The main event for 2019 was exhibiting at my first art fair! This was such a fantastic and invaluable learning experience for me, completely out of my comfort zone and pushed my boundaries tenfold as a new artist. I'm super excited to tell you that I'm going to be exhibiting with Roy's Art Fair again in April! This time at the famous OXO Tower on the South Bank. This venue is completely different to the Truman Brewery, full of raw, rustic space and a labyrinth of rooms that will house lots of familiar faces, as well as lots of new artists making their debut at Roy's. January has seen me pondering over what to show this spring. Whilst my heart lies in rich texture and bold pink paint, I feel the need to grow and progress out of my comfort zone and take inspiration from the world beyond my multicoloured paint collection!

2020 sees us living in troubling times with the climate emergency at the forefront of conversation in the media, ice caps are melting and Australia is being torn apart at the hands of severe drought, extreme heat and the onslaught of wildfires. The focus of this conversation is rightly directed at the cause and effect of human behaviour, which has led us all to pay more heed and awareness to the surrounding world that we live in and the preservation of the environment we get to call home.

With this in mind, I've decided to dedicate my next series of work to the ferocious, merciless force that is 'Mother Nature'. It is impossible not to be moved and inspired by her presence in the world around us. We see her power in the news every day, a force to be reckoned with, revered and never underestimated. I hope to present a series that conveys her life and magnitude within our mundane existence.

This will be a huge step for me in terms of growth as an artist, moving away (temporarily) from the security of my block neon's and introducing some deep and darker elements to my work. Previously my portfolio has been centred around human experience so I am excited to work from a new perspective and present you something different for the new year.

With the arrival of each new year, I like to set an achievable goal list that I steadily work towards as the year progresses. I find that I struggle to keep motivation and direction when I don't have something specific to accomplish. Right at the top of the list for 2020 is to get myself an art studio!

My ultimate goal is to see my work in commercial spaces, therefore I need a more dedicated work space to create in. I've spent the last few years painting in my room, however, the bigger the canvases are getting, the more difficult it has become to work with space restrictions. Therefore I plan to spend the year manifesting a shiny new (probably not new) art space to paint bigger artworks and expand my sales network.

I also plan to rework the logo, this is something I've been yearning to do for a very long time, with the further aim of branching out into The Bird Talks merchandise. Woop woop! I am working towards creating another dimension for the brand, beyond my original paintings.

I'm so very grateful to be taking you on the journey with me into 2020 and thank you all for your support since conception of this wild idea. The future is looking exciting my friends!

Wishing you all a happy, healthy and fun-fuelled decade ahead.