Writing this quickly from work where I have had to spend much of my time during university, I’ve had to make it happen alongside my practice to find my course. Since discovering oil painting it will always be my favourite medium to use, so soft to work with over multiple layers- after years of error I believe I’ve become better at understanding it. Summer work at Gallery M.I in Wirksworth, Derbyshire, provided an insight into how physically demanding it is to install work, but also the importance of having a gallery connected to a community. People are a key part of my paintings, appearing in crowds in stations, galleries and familiar but unidentifiable places except to the individuals who feature in them. The series of tattooed animals came simply from asking friends their favourite animal and tattoo, like an anonymous portrait. I will continue to paint strangers, friends and family, always with oils and an orange underpainting.