Lily / Lil-Let Pond

This painting is inspired by an event that happened to me many years ago. I had camped near Stackpole Quay in Pembrokeshire and risen very early to watch for otters and kingfishers at the wonderful large lily pools at Bosherston. This beautiful environment is man-made, but the ponds are fed by a natural underground reservoir and water flows from the lakes into the sandy bay of Broad Haven.

I couldn’t resist swimming in such a lovely, remote environment and dived down between the stems of the lily pads and enjoyed the rising sunlight refracting through the clear water. However, a few strokes further on, as I rose towards the surface, I came face to face with a used tampon tangled among the stems. This was the watery equivalent of stepping in dog mess and I felt defiled as a result.

Painting an underwater scene and incorporating my environmental message has been challenging for me. I wanted to create a beautiful painting that would attract viewers and yet I also to give them a smaller sensation of the shock I had felt when they see the tampon. I hope I’ve achieved this in a tasteful way.