NATURAL FLOURISH
Lisa Hardy’s botanical tiles take inspiration from flowers in bloom
ight now, I can see a beautiful moss-covered drystone wall, our meadow, lots of heather and, beyond that, a field full of Shetland ponies,’ the artist Lisa Hardy says, speaking to me from her Welsh farmhouse. ‘This summer, I’m hoping to grow cornflowers, sweet peas and more vegetables.’ Hardy adores this landscape and its way of life, which is something of a sea change from her former career in fashion, working for Alberta Ferretti, Sergio Rossi and Bella Freud. Now a full-time painter, she takes inspiration from the mark-making of Cy Twombly and the colour palettes of David Hockney and Pierre Bonnard to create her abstract botanical watercolours. Most recently, she has turned her hand to ceramic tiles, which she fabricates herself in a local pottery before decorating them with florals. ‘I like that they serve a purpose in the home,’ she says, ‘as well as being miniature works of art themselves.’ charlotte brook Lisa Hardy’s tiles (www.lisahardy.co.uk) are available from Edit58 (www.edit58.com).