Claire Hankey is a contemporary abstract artist living and working in Leigh on Sea, by the Thames Estuary in Essex. Claire creates atmospheric paintings that are evocative of landscapes experienced and remembered. Whilst out on her daily walks, Claire often collects wild plants and uses them as mark making tools within her painting, fragments of which are often left embedded within the layers of paint.

‘What I see, hear, smell and feel, all play a part in how I interpret the landscape. Though my paintings may not resemble an actual place, they are landscapes from within my memory.’

Claire has created a unique collection of work for Aldeburgh Contemporary Arts entitled ‘Equinox’. The work is a response to the changing of the seasons around the Autumnal Equinox; the subtle shift in light and atmosphere as the days shorten. You can learn more about this collection by watching the short film created specially for this exhibition.

Claire has exhibited her work through a number of local and online art galleries. In 2020 she was selected for the Society of Women Artists Exhibition (SWA). In 2022, Claire had a solo show in her hometown entitled ‘Foraged Marks’, she also took part in the The Leigh Art Trail exhibiting a body of work in response to the Summer Solstice. Claire runs seasonal ‘Experimental Mark Making Workshops’ where she shares her techniques and inspires others to create work using nature as a starting point. She is also the art coordinator at an independent prep school in her hometown and has a BA (Hons) in Art History.