Jo Aylward British, b. 1974

Jo Aylward is a British ruralist whose paintings are embedded in the everyday experience of living and working in the countryside.

 

She studied Fine Art Painting and Printmaking at Bretton Hall College, in the grounds of the Yorkshire Sculpture Park, in the late 1990s. This was a formative moment in the development of Jo’s artistic practice, during which time she consciously developed a relationship with the natural world through walking in and reflecting on the often-wild landscapes of Yorkshire, and painting in response to that reflection. Having spent two decades living in East Kent, Jo has now returned to Yorkshire, to the rural community of Swaledale, near Richmond. Living and working in a small valley, surrounded by farms and animal agriculture is providing a wealth of new material for the paintings. Swaledale is known for its abundant flower meadows, its hardy sheep, and its vast moorlands. Jo is now involved in the creation of a small meadow and orchard near her home. As in Kent, she continues to find subject matter in her kitchen garden and the fields around her home. Jo’s process remains the same, with memories of transient moments and chance encounters with birds, insects, and flowers forming the basis of her work. The objects in the paintings come from Jo’s carefully curated studio collection, while vintage nature books provide aides memoire for the natural elements.