A York artist who started painting in her 60s is hosting an exhibition.
Before becoming an artist, Carol Douglas worked in a variety of jobs, including as a nursery teacher.
She spent six years in Bangkok in her 50s and was inspired by meeting artists in Bali, Japan and Borneo.
In her late 60s, Carol decided to enrol on an art foundation course at York College. She started painting and at the end of the course, she won the York College of Art and Design lifelong student of the year award 2018.
Carol has collected art throughout her life, with an extensive collection of paintings and sculptures.
She works with acrylic on canvas, detailing with oil pastel. Many of her themes were initially derived from home but recently she has begun to paint figures in a semi-abstract style.
Carol’s first time exhibiting her work was at café Partisan in York. She regularly takes part in York Open Studios, which is an opportunity to show people her studio, and discuss her work and process.
She said: “I spent many years disappointed in myself for not going to art college, for not being brave and challenging my parent’s decisions.
“To discover that I could take an arts foundation course at 66 was a revelation. I jumped at the chance.
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“As you grow older you feel that certain opportunities have passed you by. However the reality is that the doors are not all closed. It is easy to feel the fear of failure in trying something new, but I just wanted to give myself this chance as a gift.
“I am still surprised by my success. I never imagined I would sell my work and be shown in galleries.”
Her exhibition, ‘Actually I Can’, includes 51 new paintings of various sizes, all of which will be for sale. It will be held at the Yorkshire Sculpture Park centre, from July 13 to October 27.
Prices range from £325 to £1,430 with all proceeds going direct to the artist and to Yorkshire Sculpture Park (YSP) to support its charitable work. Works will be hung in several spaces in the YSP Centre.
The exhibition’s title Actually I Can is inspired by Carol’s background.
Despite starting later in life, Carol has exhibited in several galleries in the UK, collaborated with brands including TOAST and her work is collected worldwide.
She added: “I am delighted to have my largest exhibition to date at Yorkshire Sculpture Park, for which I have included a bespoke series of large-scale paintings for the café space.
“This exhibition has encouraged me to revisit my back catalogue of work, drawing from and bringing together my favourite ideas from across my painting career thus far, putting it all together for one show.”
She added: “Having the opportunity to present in such a prestigious art venue is a joy and a privilege.”
