Catherine Hyde

ABOUT CATHERINE HYDE

I have always been interested in history and mythology and use archetypal images and personal symbols to express my ideas about the landscape in order to exploit the deep reaction I feel to the vastness of the movements of the universe and the transition of the seasons.

My recent set of paintings have been inspired by the story of Bloduedd from the Welsh Mabinogion myths– a woman who was created out of flowers and turned into an owl. Like the hare and stag the owl appears in many myths and legends and holds a very special place in our understanding of Nature and the landscape. I use these archetypes as emblems of wildness, fertility and permanence: their movements and journeys through the paintings act as vehicles that bind the elements together

My work always attempts to convey the landscape in a state of suspension in order to gain a glimpse of its interconnectedness, its history and beauty.

‘Over the past few years I have become increasingly obsessed with the tension between meeting points and journeys: land and water – river and sea – twilight and moonrise - night and dawn – high tide and low tide. Drawing on symbolism derived from Greek, Norse, European and Welsh myth, I use the archetypal stag, hare and fish as emblems of wildness, fertility and permanence. Their movements through the paintings act as vehicles that bind the elements together. I am constantly trying to convey the landscape in a state of suspension – the moment between the rise and fall of a wave – in order to reveal the profound connection between man and Nature.’

“Catherine Hyde…..is fast becoming one of Cornwall’s most celebrated artists. It is easy to see why. Her work, replete with archetypal symbolism and yet discernibly her own, has a tantalizing, ineffable feel allied with a delicate, but never precious, sensitivity.” Alex Wade

Catherine Hyde trained in Fine Art Painting at Central School of Art, London. Originally from the South East of England, she now lives in Cornwall and exhibits Nationally.