Andy Thornley

I work mainly in charcoal, pastel and oil. Recently I have been working on drawings and paintings of the holloways and field boundaries in the foothills of the Black Mountains in Wales. An earlier theme was the steelworks at Port Talbot in South Wales, inspired by the strange forms of the buildings, their weathered colours and the drama of the steam and smoke. A trip to the Faroe Islands and Iceland inspired a body of landscape work. I found enormous inspiration in the spectacular rock formations, colours and atmospheric conditions. I am also continuing to work on portraiture and figure drawing. Most of my earlier career was spent as an academic, writing, researching and teaching about urban planning. I pursued my interest in art through numerous part-time courses including those at Central Saint Martins, the City Lit and the Royal Drawing School. I work from North London and South Wales.