“When I embarked on my artistic journey in 2018 I was armed with nothing but my creativity, desire to develop my skills and see where the journey would take me. As a self-taught artist, I have had no formal training or guidance to lean on. I understand that my lack of formal education might be seen as a disadvantage by some, but I chose to view it as an opportunity. I became my own teacher, constantly seeking sources of inspiration and learning from my mistakes. Books, online tutorials, and visiting galleries became my sanctuary, offering me an insight into different artistic styles and approaches. I embraced the trial and error process that came with self-teaching, allowing myself to embrace mistakes as valuable lessons rather than setbacks, I experimented with different mediums but found frustration with the results. I finally discovered drawing with pen and it was then that everything fell into place, I was able to produce the detail I craved to create. With more experimentation I discovered painting with ink and then with adding just a splash of colour, my signature style was born. I regularly push myself out of my comfort zone to expand my skills as I know it is the only way to develop and grow.

I believe we are all able to create beauty in our own way, with dedication, patience and an eye for detail I discovered the art I was always meant to create.”

Always one to jump in the deep end and see what happens, Astra hasn’t held back since she decided to be a full time artist a few short years ago.

In the first 4yrs of being a professional artist Astra secured gallery representation, exhibited internationally including New York, London, Singapore, Hong Kong and Dallas. To date she has written and illustrated 2 children’s books and was shortlisted for the David Shepherd Wildlife Artist of the Year Award ‘20. She has donated art to multiple charities and had her work exhibited at The United Nations Climate Change Conference in Glasgow ‘21.

In January ‘22 Astra contributed to The Other Avatars NFT project after being invited by Saatchi Art, her 20 NFT’s are available for resale on Opensea after the entire collection by 154 international artists sold out within minutes.

Astra continues to exhibit and is in the process of creating a new body of work with a new direction as well as working on her next children’s books.

Based in Aldeburgh, Suffolk, Astra exhibits locally as well as nationally and internationally, get in touch or follow to find out where her next exhibition will be.

A sense of adventure…

Outside of her studio Astra is a passionate explorer and a lover of nature. She loves to travel off the beaten track and there is nothing she enjoys more than to embark on an adventure. Since her mid thirties Astra has hiked in numerous far flung places and cannot wait to be able to tick off more trails from her list of hiking dreams. So far these have included the base camp of Mount Everest, numerous mountains in China, The Tiger Leaping Gorge, 1800 miles across the USA on the Pacific Crest Trail from Mexico to Canada, summiting Mount Whitney, Half Dome, Arches National Park, Zion and numerous other mini adventures along the way.

Astra’s dream is to hike a long distance trail on every continent and to follow the path of the Little Blue Tit in her illustrated Children’s Book ‘The Blue Tit Travels’.