Jan Mcpartland

I was born in Shoreditch, London some 50 years before it became the global centre of art it is today. My story is that of the area: I grew up in a working-class house, left school aged 15 and saw my artistic impulses frustrated by the vagaries of everyday life: first working my way up in the world of hair and beauty, owning a business aged 18, and then marrying and having children.

In my fifties, with my children all having studied at university, I took the chance to devote time to my art in a way I had never been able to before. I channelled much of what I had learned and experienced in the prior decades, creating works themed around what it means to be a woman, a wife, a mother and an artist.

My return to education began with a Foundation Course in Art and Creative Computing and culminated in a degree in Fine Art at the School of Art, Architecture and Design of London Metropolitan University (then Guildhall University).

I was then an associate member to the university for five years, which allowed me to develop my skills and style in ceramic sculpture.

I also worked as a gallery assistant for four years at Unit 2 in Whitechapel.

I have had various exhibitions in Hackney Town Hall, Limehouse Education Centre, Guildhall University and Brick Lane.