The Noah's Ark of Watercolour

  • Tori Ratcliffe
  • 13th May 2016

I’m an Edinburgh based artist, born and bred in Hampshire. I was first introduced to watercolours by my aunt when I was 21, but was too impatient for the traditional method of painting so I developed my own unique style; applying the paint first in a loose expressive manner and then drawing the fine details afterwards in pen. This lively painting style enables me to express the life and vitality of my chosen subject, with the pen strokes working to contradict the chaos of the paint, anchoring the piece together. It’s great fun watching the splodges of paint slowly turn into an animal. You can find some paintings in progress uploaded onto my facebook page.

I managed to develop my skills as an artist in between my studies at University where I earned a First Class Honours Degree in Creative Advertising. Within a year of leaving university I’d managed to turn my painting passion into a career and began to fully establish myself as a working artist, exhibiting in many galleries including the prestigious Mall Galleries in Pall Mall, London, where I was short-listed for the international ‘David Shepherd Wildlife Artist of the Year’ competition (see my Turtle print available for sale). I’ve also had the opportunity of a solo exhibition at the Corner Gallery in Greater London, and a joint exhibition in London entitled ‘The Art of Helping Rhinos’ where I met TV wildlife presenter Nigel Marvin and he bought one of my paintings!

Aside from the painting, my other passion lies with the natural world. Having lost 50% of our planet’s wildlife in just 40 years, it’s absolutely vital that we protect what’s left. Because of this, I am constantly trying to find new ways to utilise my artwork to raise both money and awareness for various wildlife and environmental conservation charities. To find out more about the organisations I work with, please visit the charity page.

After all, it’s only fair that the animals I paint get something back.

I've had a fantastic experience with Bidbi. To find a company that shares my ethical values is just beyond brilliant. I've recommended them to several people, including the charity SOS (Sumatran Orangutan Society) who I created a design for and they had it printed on to their own range of bags. I have heard they were equally thrilled with the standard of service provided and the quality of the products produced. Bidbi are definitely one of the most friendly, considerate and trustworthy companies I've worked with which makes life much easier for me as a small business owner!

www.toriratcliffe-art.co.uk

www.facebook.com/toriratcliffeart

Instagram: @toriratcliffeart