Bess Harding always yearned to make art, but struggled for many years to find her niche. When she discovered oil paints and she was immediately struck with a sense of certainty, 'I instantly felt that this was it - this was painting' she says, 'I suddenly had a licence to concentrate on the quiet beauty of a simple object, simply portrayed.'
Working with a limited palette of six colours and white, Bess uses as few brushstrokes as possible to avoid overworking her delicate compositions. She chooses her subjects instinctively, telling us: 'I like the idea of taking a flower or an object out of its everyday environment, of choosing it, of giving it space to breathe and a little stage to sit quietly on so that it can be considered. And sometimes there might be an element of humour: a little interaction between objects; an unexpected juxtaposition.'
Bess’s work has been selected for prestigious exhibitions including the Columbia Threadneedle Art Prize (2018), the Society of Women Artists (2019), the Royal Society of British Artists (2020), and the Royal Academy Summer Exhibition (2022 & 2023). Alongside her delightful still life paintings, Bess has recently been exploring abstract sea and landscapes. Below, Bess has selected three paintings from her current collection to share the stories behind their creation...