Flags on the Merse

Heather Blanchard was born and spent her childhood in the West Midlands. After attending Wolverhampton and Chelsea Schools of Art, she spent her early career as a successful textile designer based in London. Here she worked as a part-time lecturer. In the 1980’s she gave up teaching to concentrate on interior design, exhibition design and hand printed wallpapers; while also illustrating several countryside and educational publications. She has been a professional fine art painter for over thirty years. Having led a fairly nomadic life, her last move was to Scotland twelve years ago.

Heather lives amidst beautiful woodland and countryside, and chooses to paint the often-unconsidered parts of landscapes – the simple trees, gates, hedges and tracks – rather than dramatic and awe-inspiring panoramas. As objects in themselves they may be uninspiring but once they are considered within the context of particular light, season and weather conditions they quickly become fascinating and beautiful subjects to paint.

For Heather, the foundations of the whole process are the regular walks she takes. The initial drawings, the stretching and priming of the canvas, the composition, the applying of paint, the failures, the alterations and the successes are all key; however, none of these can begin without the regular experience of walking in the landscape that she paints.