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Sarah Lester

Born in Paris on Christmas Day in 1966, Sarah Lester studied art and music in Oxford, and then portraiture at Heatherley’s School of Fine Art in London. Playing golf since the age of 10, she became a successful amateur golfer, winning seven County Championships and playing for England. Through her golfing connections, she furthered her career as an artist and was commissioned by the BBC to produce a series of paintings and drawings for the 2002 Ryder Cup. Lester also became an author, travel writer, newspaper columnist, and TV and radio presenter. The artist’s work has featured in The Times, The Sunday Times Magazine, The Telegraph, Harpers & Queens, Sky News, and the BBC.

Following this overwhelmingly busy period in her life, Lester retreated alone to Rock in North Cornwall. Burnt out and grief-stricken at the loss of her father, she stayed there for twelve years. In 2006, she exhibited a series of paintings based on her view out to sea, alongside her written daily emotional barometer diary, “Stepper Point Diaries”. This cathartic visual and written record aided her recovery and forged an important connection with the Padstow Contemporary Gallery in Cornwall, which represented her for several years. 

The underlayers of Sarah’s paintings that normally remain hidden are revealed. Copper and tin, so evocative of Cornish mines, are used to almost back-light each work. The coal blackness of the outside edge of the frames reflects the dark, brooding coastal rocks, contrasting with the natural oak at the front. These paintings are predominantly created from memory, giving them an immediacy and emotional quality that could only come from Sarah Lester. To reveal hidden colours and textures in a compelling way, Sarah came up with a unique process. Each painting has five or more paint layers, the hidden layers only revealed later. Her aim is to reveal hidden colours in the rocks, the sea, and sky, exposing their very spirit. Once the composition and layers are complete, she works with a sander. It’s hard physical work, but it is a wonderful way of producing ‘happy accidents’ and colour accents. She uses her hands, sponges, and the occasional paint brush, moving quickly across the image. She wants it to be instinctive and from her very ‘memory’.

Lester now lives and works in Kent, visiting Cornwall for two months each year.

Her work has been exhibited in Christie’s (London), Cafe Royal (London), Cork Street Gallery, London, Padstow Contemporary Art Gallery, and Wentworth Golf Club. Lester’s work can also be found in the private collections of Egan-Property Asset Management, Cantor Fitzgerald, Chelsfield PLC, Jupiter Asset Management, Rothschild’s, Nick Faldo, Lord Maclaurin, and William Fforde.