Hazel Astling graduated from Sheffield University with a BSc in zoology and followed a career in teaching. After retirement she returned to her interest in art and now works mainly in pastel and watercolour.
Her scientific training developed her observational skills, and Hazel’s work reflects this. She prefers to work directly from life, often designing still life pictures that provide wide scope for composition and innovation. Deliberately unconventional collections of objects are intended to encourage the viewer to ask questions and find their own connections within the picture.
It is the detailed structures of her chosen objects that appeal to her, but the colours, shapes and juxtapositions in her compositions add to her enjoyment of picture making.
