WHEN I WAS YOUNG, I was set on becoming a hairdresser, and even had an apprenticeship lined up. But my art teacher, Mr Cop, encouraged me to look into art college. Then, three weeks before my first in

→ When Bella meets Chris Packham, she engages in what the wildlife presenter describes as an “ancient greeting ceremony”. That is to say, she licks his entire face. “Oh, she likes you,” says Big Issue

Taking up painting later in life is a common thing and perhaps more so today. As well as taking up a passion that did not materialise in our working and having-a-family life, more of us are keen to ta

Taking up painting later in life is a common thing and perhaps more so today. As well as taking up a passion that did not materialise in our working and having-a-family life, more of us are keen to ta

BASED IN NORTHERN IRELAND, Janice Lightowler works in oil and graphite. When working on her oil paintings, she uses only one small brush, irrespective of the size of the piece, and later attaches that

Some of my earliest and fondest memories are of drawing. I constantly drew monsters, video game characters and comic book heroes. I kept this up through my late teens until it dawned on me that art wa