THREE artists whose work depicts very different aspects of the North York Moors are exhibiting their work at the Inspired by… gallery, Danby, in May.

Illusion is the First of all Pleasures features the landscapes of artist Christine Pybus and ceramics by Penny de Corte, while Flora in Abundance comprises floral paintings, landscapes and seascapes by Rosemary Abrahams.

Whitby-born Christine Pybus left school for a career in communications, but indulged her lifelong passion for painting whenever possible. She began to paint full-time in 1997 and her oils and watercolours are almost always completed on locations.

Christine travels extensively and has painted in Europe, Russia, Australia and New Zealand as well as lecturing on art history and running courses and demonstrations. She is currently writing for Leisure Painter magazine, and has featured in a Sky 1 documentary. Christine is a member of the Fylingdales Group of Artists.

She said: “I paint only what excites me and whilst I am guided by what’s in front of me it’s not in fact my primary concern, rather capturing the light, movement and colour to create a picture, as opposed to an exact representation of that scene. I love to use that extra dimension afforded by thick oil paint combined with immediate brushmarks, a style which particularly lends itself to many of my favourite subjects: billowing clouds, sparkling water and deep, crisp snow.”

Ceramicist Penny de Corte produces sculptural art inspired by animal life and nature’s spirals and fossils. Working with a mixture of contemporary style and traditional methods she continuously challenges her creative skills and fulfils her passion for working with clay.

Penny is motivated by researching a subject that captures her imagination and, through design and the stripping away of the distraction of detail, creates a recognisable style of fluid sensuous form.

She said: “Spirals have always been fascinating to me and my latest range of vessels and wall plaques has evolved from designs inspired by ammonites, shells and nature in general. Decorated by carving, imprinting, burnishing and oxides these sculptural pieces create dramatic art with smooth undulating form representing ‘a moment in time’.”

Rosemary Abrahams studied painting and printmaking at Leeds College of Art in the 1960s, alongside sculptor John French, later her husband and business partner. The couple established an international design studio for home and fashion products, producing, among other things, handmade rugs in Nepal, jute products in Bangladesh, ceramics in Europe and textiles in the USA.

Rosemary continued to paint and exhibit, in places such as New York, Frankfurt, Paris, Amsterdam and London, before returning to Yorkshire where she set up her Studio Gallery in Bridlington in 2003.

“My work is influenced by the power and presence of the North Sea, and by the simplicity of the largely uninhabited North Yorkshire countryside,” saidRosemary. “I also have the desire to express my life – and thus my painting – in terms of colour, which then becomes form; sometimes abstract or landscape, sometimes floral.”

Both exhibitions run until Monday. May 30 May.

The Inspired by… gallery at The Moors National Park Centre hosts changing exhibitions of work by artists who draw their inspiration from the landscape, life and colour of the North York Moors. Admission is free, and the gallery is open daily from 10am to 5pm in the spring and summer months.

For more information on the North York Moors National Park and forthcoming exhibitions and events, go to www.northyorkmoors.org.uk