North Norfolk-based Artist Cathy Wild is preparing for her first solo exhibition, which takes place in Aylsham next month. Cathy explains how she took up drawing after losing a hospitality business in Indonesia – following an earthquake
If you had to describe your life in a paragraph, what would you say?
My life has been shaped by a series of quite unexpected transitions. I’ve moved through very different environments and ways of living, often having to start again from scratch. Those shifts weren’t always planned, but over time they’ve taught me to trust my own instincts and inner direction. That sense of self-trust has become something that underpins both how I live and how I create.
What has brought you to North Norfolk? Are you from Norfolk originally?
I spent time living and working abroad in Indonesia, where I owned and ran a hospitality business, before a major earthquake brought that chapter to an abrupt end. After returning to the UK, I spent several years living and working across the Lake District.
I eventually returned to Norfolk, where my parents have lived for many years, and it has since become a place of grounding and rebuilding, where a new direction has been able to take shape.
What has led you to becoming an artist?
It really began after my dad died. He had just started experimenting with painting himself, and I found myself picking up his brushes as a way to process what I was going through.
At the time, it wasn’t about becoming an artist, it was simply a way of making sense of things. Over time, that grew into a steady practice, and eventually into the work I’m creating now, exploring the quieter internal shifts that sit beneath external change.
How would you describe your artistic style?
I work with charcoal and gold leaf, creating detailed animal drawings that explore themes of transformation, instinct and self-trust. Much of the work sits in that quiet space just before change becomes visible, the internal shift that happens before action.
Animals such as foxes, birds and butterflies appear as symbolic carriers of that transition. I’m interested in restraint, knowing when to stop, and allowing space within the piece so it holds a sense of stillness. Gold leaf is used sparingly to mark moments of quiet emphasis.
Where can people see your work at present?
My work is currently on display at The Red Dot Gallery in Holt, with additional pieces and prints due to be released through the gallery in the coming months. I also share new work and pieces in progress online as they develop, with many of these works forming part of my upcoming solo exhibition, The Shift, in June. My website will also be launching soon, bringing together a full collection of the work.
How excited are you to be preparing for your first solo exhibition? When and where is it taking place?
It feels like a significant moment. The exhibition, The Shift, brings together work created during a period of personal transition, so there’s something quite meaningful about showing it as a complete body. It explores that space between what has been and what is emerging, which feels very reflective of my own journey. It will take place on 23rd June 2026 at Seventeen on Red Lion Street in Aylsham, with a daytime exhibition and an evening viewing.
And where can people find out more about what you do?
I currently share most of my work and updates through Facebook and, more recently, LinkedIn, where I regularly post new pieces as they develop. My website will also be launching soon, bringing together a full collection of my work, alongside details of my upcoming exhibition, The Shift, in Aylsham this June.
Alongside this, I’m also opening a small number of commissioned pieces, based on people’s personal experiences of significant life shifts, creating work that reflects and marks those moments of change.
Cathy Wild‘s first solo exhibition, The Shift, takes place at Seventeen, Red Lion Street, Aylsham on June 23, 2026. Follow Cathy Wild on Instagram.
Featured images – supplied
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