West Yorkshire-Based Artist Claire Murray
‘Quarry’ by Claire Murray
This week I’m looking at the work of fantastic local artist, Claire Murray, who creates beautiful abstract artwork from her West Yorkshire studio. Abstract paintings are so interesting and evocative - without doubt my favourite type of art - so I was thrilled to discover Claire’s work when we were in the middle of our house renovation.
Claire Murray in her studio
“Most of all, nature is my main inspiration,” says Claire when I ask what inspires her work, “My paintings are essentially about the world around me, and are an attempt to understand the systems and natural order of our existence. I am inspired by the landscape, its geography, topography, light, colour, texture and sense of place and space.”
‘Traverse’ by Claire Murray
Claire completed an MA in Fine Art in 1995 and until recently, she worked as a college art teacher before taking the leap to full-time artist in 2019. Since then, she has had her work displayed in many exhibitions from Hebden Bridge to Chicago. Her paintings are also on permanent display at The Moorcock Inn, Norland.
‘Bright’ by Claire Murray
A beautiful piece of abstract art can really pull an interior design scheme together and Claire’s varied colour palettes make her paintings perfect for interior schemes, whether you want to create a calming feel or a dramatic statement. Claire explains that she loves to work with earthy colours that are linked strongly to nature, “Subconsciously, I’m very often in tune with the seasons, and tend to change my palette as the weather and light changes during the year.”
‘Boy’ by Claire Murray
Some of Claire’s paintings interestingly include words or parts of poems. “On my small watercolours, I add the text after the painting is completed, finding a poem that fits with the atmosphere, colours and suggestions in the piece,” says Claire, “Sometimes a single word or phrase will find its way into a piece, only to be partly obscured or trapped within a layer of paint, often twisting meaning or making it difficult to fully interpret. I like a little bit of ambiguity in my work.”
Claire’s artwork is available to buy at Hope Gallery in Hebden Bridge. Email her with any queries and follow her on Instagram @claire_murray_studio.
