Hello, I'm Ros,

I had already spent 3 years doing fine art, landscapes, seascapes, portraits, etc., and the brush was becoming a constant fixture in my hand. Then I discovered an art form that was to change my life. One day I came across an advertisement in the local paper which read, "Come and paint beautiful roses". How could I resist? I am not sure if the particular variety of those early roses that I painted have yet been discovered, but I thought they were pretty good, and so did my encouraging family. Thus began the "pursuit of the perfect rose".

Using acrylic paints, a new variety of brushes, the multi brush loading techniques, and Folk and Decorative Art opened a whole new career in painting for me. Jo Sonja Jansen was teaching at a convention that I was attending in Ballarat, not long after I had started learning Folk Art, and she said these words, "There is a book within every one of you." The seed was planted in my mind and five years later my first book "Roses Please" was published, followed by a second book, "Romantic Cottages".

Over the past 10 years I have enjoyed teaching from my studio at home, all over the country, in five states in Australia, and recently in England and Ireland. I had the opportunity to teach two of my daughters, Tania and Alison. Together we worked in our shops. Tania painted gorgeous bears, Alison did all the beautiful traditional stroke-work pieces, and I painted the Roses. Both girls went on to be versatile in all areas of folk art and great teachers. The shops were a great success until Tania married, Alison went overseas and I had to change "channels" fast. Back to a studio.

I am always impressed how Folk Art has the wonderful ability to reach and impress such a wide variety of students. A grade three boy, decked out in his waterproof smock, was so anxious to get going he told me to "stop talking and let's paint." Then there was a doctor who decorated his surgery with his own work. Ukrainian in his consulting rooms, florals in the reception, and bears were featured in the waiting room. It was quite a challenge getting both eyes the same on the cutout cuts that the Brownies painted, the day I taught them. I have to say though, the greatest reward to me as a teacher is to see women of low self-esteem, enter the classroom for the first time, spend a couple of hours creating something beautiful, and leave so excited at their achievements.

The few hours I spend drawing out the creativity in a student can go on
to give a lifetime of pleasure. Creativity plays a significant part in our life, and I can't think of a nicer way to express ourselves than in the beautiful art form of Folk and Decorative Art. Always paint with love.