Linda Charles @ IMAGES IN FRAMES

Linda Charles was born in 1969 in the South East of England. ‘As long as I can remember I have always had a creative streak; drawing and designing from a very early age.’
She attended Herriot Watt University in Scotland where she studied textiles and fashion. This led her to an interest in abstract work in which she became more and more involved.
She began to design work incorporating heavy texture using materials such as gold and silver leaf. The use of colour at the time lent itself to the advent of the interior design boom of the early 2000’s and her work began to sell in huge quantities worldwide.
She has always been keen to develop her work by ‘fusing certain qualities of my abstract work into real life imagery.’
She lives in a beautiful part of Hertfordshire surrounded by nature and rolling countryside and uses her surroundings for inspiration. Her proximity to the National Trust’s ancient Hatfield Forest, once a favourite hunting location for Henry VIII, provides excellent reference for raw and unspoilt imagery, which is always her starting point of any piece.
Walking her Golden Retriever, Doug, gives her the opportunity to think and immerse herself in the natural surroundings. Always exploring new areas produces fresh ideas and inspirations, coming across run down, deserted buildings and wild wooded areas are perfect reference for texture and surface ideas, which she translates so well into art, having always had a liking for tactile pieces.
The forest covers a large unspoilt area featuring a large lake and quiet backwaters. It’s here that she is in her element and where deer roam freely this is where she most feels at one with nature.
Once back in the studio she sketches out the scene of her work marking areas she wants to build texture for effect. The vibrancy created by the colours she uses enables the piece to border delicately between abstract and real-life imagery.
She aims to create the calm and tranquil feelings she gains from her earlier experiences in the forest and around the lake. A new floral range reflecting these subtle tones on textured pastel-based backgrounds is another new addition to an already impressive back catalogue of art and design spanning some 25 years.
Her love for fashion and animals have recently combined to produce brand new collections using her traditional combinations of textures and various media, now including elements of digital collage, with loveable animals against unique backdrops as well as magnificent pieces of individual fashionable couture models featuring stunning ‘real’ textures such as feathers, jewels and fabrics.