Catherine Whitfield's portraits are sometimes inspired by old newspaper clippings or images in books, but just as often they come entirely from her imagination—shaped by a feeling, a mood, or a passing impression rather than a specific reference.
Catherine Whitfield was born in Dublin in 1943. Her family ran a wedding and evening gown shop. At 15, she moved to England and went on to study at Kennington Art School in the early 1960s. She later met and married Bryan Whitfield, and together they had three children. A lifelong sketcher and poet, Catherine continued to create while raising her family. In the late 1960s, the family travelled through Spain and Morocco in a van, painting and working along the way—an experience later captured in the book A Moment in Time: Spain 1969.
