Ellen Churchill Plantevin

"I was born in Mt. Kisco , New York in 1960. Until I was ten years old I lived overseas with my parents and two brothers. In 1970, we moved to Lafayette, California. I attended the University of California, Berkeley where I earned a BSc in Conservation Resource Studies in 1982.

I currently live in London, England but spend my summers in Woodstock, Vermont.

A few years ago I made a conscious switch from working primarily in mixed water media back to oils. I decided that I wanted to re-examine some of the basics of drawing and painting. I chose to use still-life as my subject matter as I am fascinated by the endless opportunity for choice in colour, size, and shape of objects available in my daily life. With just a few objects I have the chance to decide what I want to express through the choice of light, palette range and focus.

Modern life seems to fly at such a hectic pace that I like to be able to create an environment where one can feel that time has stopped and one can appreciate the simple beauty of light on everyday objects."