Contemporary painter, Laura Middleton captures the essence of her surrounds. Her oil and mixed media works have a recurring theme depicting local rivers and ponds found in the Cotswold landscape. Born in South Yorkshire, Laura studied illustration and graphic design at the University of West of England and has spent many years working as a specialist decorator.

 

The Oxfordshire landscape fuels Laura’s portfolio as she draws threads through the likes of Rousham, Port Meadow, Blenheim and Asthall Manor regularly. The untamed banks of rivers and lakes dominate her viewpoint as she sketches and photographs scenes that she will then paint back in the studio.

 

Laura’s paintings are built up of several layers. Firstly the gesso provides a chalky surface on which she uses charcoal and inks to lay out the structure of the landscape. On top, the oils have an abstract fluidity where the landscape’s details are blurred into the essence of a place – the self’s immersion into the environment.

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"My work explores the interplay between reflection, abstraction, and nature, with water serving as both subject and metaphor. I’m fascinated by the convergence of multiple planes on a single surface, capturing moments that are both serene and visually complex. In my paintings, I invite viewers to engage with different layers of reality—the reflections on the surface, the sky above, and the riverbed below. These scenes reflect how I experience the world, not just through observation, but filtered through my emotions and inner landscapes.

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My most recent body of work expresses a hopeful vision of nature. I’ve focused on the beauty and ecological restoration of this stretch of river, which represents what our waterways can become with care and stewardship. My love for nature and concern for environmental balance comes through in these works, which are meditations on purity, reflection, and hope.

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My paintings are a dialogue between my external surroundings and my inner, often chaotic self. Though I can be full of contradictions, my art tends to evoke calm and clarity, perhaps reflecting my subconscious pull toward peace. I’m inspired by artists who communicate a sense of a world that is larger and more complex than what we perceive. Painting allows me to access that “other”. To reach beyond the visible, and capture an essence of being open to something greater than we can fully understand."