Tea, cakes and headscarves

I seemed to have gathered quite a lot of old photographic slides over the years. Picking them up at flea markets and charity shops. I can't pass a box of slides without having a peek. You never know what you could find. You get to dip into someone else's life. Family photographs are so important to me. I find it doleful to see them discarded so casually.

These drawings are influenced by a selection depicting a group of elderly people on day trips. Having regular pitstops by the sea and endless cups of tea and sandwiches appear out of nowhere. I think these photos are from around the mid-1960s or so by their style. These people are strangers, but I feel a connection to them and that era. It was just before I was born. They make me nostalgic as they are so similar to my Grandparents' images, the same style of clothes and cars. Things seem so much more effortless than today. Everyone looks so happy and relaxed.

I drew these images on my iPad. It's a convenient and responsive tool when time and space for being creative is limited. My iPad got me back drawing again, and it was something I'd badly missed. I'd like to feel I'm giving these subjects a new lease of life too.

'I do like to be beside the seaside', 'Tea and cake' and 'Want a cuppa' were selected for the Royal Ulster Academy's annual exhibitions in 2019 and 2020.