Judy Musselle

I am a painter and illustrator basedon the North West coast.
I studied printmaking and illustration in the 1980s and went on to have a successful career as a professional illustrator, my work was sold worldwide in the form of greetings cards and in advertising, magazines and books. Later, I worked on art projects for many years with community groups, the NHS and in schools as an artist-in-residence.

More recently as my work has developed and I have moved away from the restrictions of commercial illustration I have focused on ways to represent the themes of love, loss and belonging. My paintings live within the realm of magical surrealism and have always been concerned with storytelling, often inspired by fairy tales, particularly the strong female characters and their relationship with enchanted creatures. I endeavour to explore and represent their magical charm through my work whilst symbolising real-life parallels – as in my personal relationship with the animal kingdom and my family.

The intention is to create a dreamlike scene of suspended drama within a natural landscape: an element of make-believe, so that each painting captures the otherworldliness which inhabits my imaginary narrative.