Ruth Lyne

Like many people who grew up in the Midlands, I have always been drawn to the sea. For many years, the colours and textures of the coast have inspired my work, along with the wide horizons, big skies and muted palette of the East Anglian landscape.

I create contemporary abstract paintings from my studio in Felixstowe on the Suffolk coast, and all of my work is inspired by things I notice on walks by the sea, local rivers and waterways. I’m especially interested in the subtle patterns and textures found in nature, even something as simple as a pebble on the shore.

Although the landscape is at the heart of my work, I’m not interested in painting realistic scenes. Instead, I want to develop a visual language of marks and colour that captures the feeling of being there — the experience of walking along the shoreline on a windy day, hearing shingle move in the waves, and standing beneath a big open sky.

Rather than recreating what I see, I try to paint the sense of beauty and calm I feel when I’m by the coast.