artbybethanyjade
a home to all of my artistic endeavours
Bethany J. Watt
Artist Bio
Bethany J. Watt is a self-taught artist living in the North-West of England who specialises in using gouache & watercolours to create bright, eye-catching nature inspired pieces. Her love for the arts and nature, nurtured since childhood, is expressed through her collection of paintings, which she often describes as, ‘an ongoing love-letter to Gaia, to mother nature herself.’
Despite her physical limitations, her art continues to explore her deep connection to the earth, encompassing the beauty of nature she may not always be able to experience first-hand.
Over the last two years, she has painted over one hundred landscapes, honing her skills as a way to process her grief of losing her grandmother, who was also an artist & watercolourist. She was a great inspiration and influence to Bethany, as they shared a love for both art & nature. Painting has helped her on her personal journey of healing.
Alongside her goal of becoming a self-sustained professional artist, Bethany aspires to combine her illustrations with storytelling, bringing her fictional worlds to life and sharing them with the world. Until then, she will continue to commit herself to always learning, experimenting, and expanding her knowledge with various mediums, embracing the belief that creating art sets the soul free.
Artist Statement
For me, art is not only an expression of life, but a way to give meaning to my own. It sustains me. Amidst all of life’s pain and hardship, art offers us a way to transform those struggles into something beautiful –something that transcends the mundane.
In my collection of paintings, I aim to portray a feeling of rose-tinted nostalgia –a sweetness we once called our own now viewed fondly from afar, with memories that are soft and hazy, fleeting like a sweet summer afternoon. This is how I choose to view the world. In both my artwork and life, I seek out the light, even and most especially in the darkness. It’s something we all must do –cling to the light.
Online visual diaries
I have recently started posting my artwork on Tiktok (@artsbybe) and occasionally Youtube (artbybe). Mostly, to use these platforms as a personal visual online diary for my art and send it off into the world via screens. I thought I would hate it, but I'm enjoying it so far. I use tiktok the most, as Youtube still feels kind of scary to me, but I'm sure with time, I'll get used to it. The support I have received on there has been so beautiful, people can be so lovely given a chance. I'm hoping eventually to expand my social platforms and really work on filling them out, but its a process. I'm learning. Nobody told me that social media would be such a big part of being a modern artist!
mental health matters
I feel very passionate about de-stigmatising mental illness and exchanging it with support for everybody who struggles with an internal battle, warfare within their mind. Mental ill health can creep up on anybody, regardless of who you are or the life you have lived. That is why I believe it is so important to normalise talking about what's going on inside our minds, to ask for help when we need it without the fear of judgement, to receive the support and compassion we all deserve.
Mental ill health is something I have sadly witnessed and experienced all of my life, whether through family members, loved ones, or myself. I have seen the negative effects of societal norms and its correlation with anxiety disorders, and how living in poverty can negatively impact your mental wellbeing, present and future, paving the way for other illnesses. I've watched helplessly as family members, friends, loved ones slipped into psychosis before my eyes and not know what to do to fix it, I've heard recounts of extreme PTSD from family elders and how it still effects them later in life. I personally know well how trauma can clutch at our skin and keep us living in fear.
I believe it is essential to our wellbeing that we all de-stigmatise mental health and rid us of the shame clouding it. To express emotion is to process, to heal. Keeping things bottled inside you is never a healthy solution, and people should feel safe to talk about their inner worlds and struggles. Personally, I have always used art as a form of therapy. Using art and creative expression as a coping skill has helped me more than any therapist ever could. For me, turning my pain into something more, something beautiful, somehow makes the weight of it more bearable. And now, I create art regularly as a way to maintain my positive mental health. Finding your expression is the most important thing you can do for your mental wellbeing, whether its art, craft, writing, exercise, dance. Do it with love, with passion.
kintsugi woman
I'll let this piece speak for itself, but it is definitely one of my more vulnerable pieces. I painted this while on a healing journey of my own, and I remember thinking that the healing process would be far more beautiful if I could only heal myself with kintsugi, the Japanese art of repairing broken pottery with gold. Its an ancient art, and a reminder to stay optimistic when things fall apart, and to embrace the flaws and mishaps of life.
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