Study for HOLDFAST series on gesso primed art paper, in acrylic and oil stick. Moving to rural Ireland in 2025, the sheer raw natural beauty of the coastline that I suddenly had access to astounded me. I discovered seaweed and became obsessed with its many powers, the history and mythology of this mysterious algae.  Seaweed that has been torn from its holdfast and thrown out of its element onto the shore by the ocean speaks to me of displacement and loss. Something that Ive experienced in my own life. I paint quickly and spontaneously as I would a portrait, to try and capture this essence.

Rebecca Hillery-Tong

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Rebecca Hillery-Tong is a British painter  living and working in UK & Ireland.  She has a formal art training & a BA in Fashion Design from Kingston University. After a 30 year career as a professional fashion designer she returned to her art practice in 2020.
Working in oil paints and pastel on various surfaces, she combines traditional techniques with a modern, spontaneous edge, working figuratively & recently focusing on seaweed imagery. Rebecca has shown and sold her work in 4 group exhibitions at independent galleries in the UK.