Having always been interested in art from childhood, Maggie nevertheless made the decision to study Mediaeval History at the University of York, eventually graduating with a B.A. and teaching qualification.

As a mother of two children and with a busy working life, she had little room for hobbies – but nevertheless continued to dabble with art, and with writing – novels and short stories. But as retirement brought more time, it was art which began to occupy her in a more committed way.

She joined Durham Art Group in 2014 and was immediately inspired by the talent by which she was surrounded. “I loved attending the group and learning from those working around me, and it unlocked in me an unquenchable desire to draw, paint, experiment, and try to capture in paint and on canvas my own way of looking at and seeing the world - particularly nature.”

For the last six years, she has been Chair of Durham Art Group and tries in her turn to develop the talent of others.

For the first few years, Maggie developed her personal style working largely in watercolour and wax, but has more recently graduated to using Brusho and acrylics, and increasingly using texture mediums to produce semi-abstract work.

Maggie has lived for the past twenty years or so in a village near Durham, surrounded by fields and a country park. She says, “I find inspiration everywhere around me, particularly in the colours and moods of the countryside which provoke in me an emotional response. I try and capture mood, movement, texture, and colour through a loose interpretation of form."

Instinctively, she expresses aspects of the natural world – trees, flowers, water, skies through an imaginative semi-abstract lens. Her paintings, often highly textured and sometimes embellished with gold, beads, chains, and random collage items, are characterised by vibrant colour and a sense of movement to impart an essence of vitality.

Maggie began in a small way to exhibit with Durham Art Group and at Tynemouth Market, then moved on to individual exhibitions – sometimes in churches around the region, and in galleries such as The Witham in Barnard Castle, Crook Hall in Durham, Richmond Station, The Tower House Gallery in Seaton Sluice, and Durham Botanical Gardens. She has also displayed and sold work in various North East shops and galleries.

She will continue to paint and has several ideas in mind for her next projects.