Patricia Ogundero has graced the borough with her unique brand of art for many years.

A well-known and popular face on Hillingdon's art scene, Patricia talks to JERRY LYONS about the inspiration for her work and an exciting forthcoming exhibition

FROM Lagos to the London borough of Hillingdon, a love of art has been a constant companion on Patricia Ogundero's journey through life.

The mother-of-four left her home in the Nigerian capital in 1995. Since being in England, she has produced hundreds of paintings, exhibited in a prestigious galleries and will begin teaching art to schoolchildren and adult learners in September.

Patricia, 43, is excited about what the future holds.

"I love painting. When I feel inspired to paint, nothing will stop me. I love living and having fun and I hope my paintings reflect this," she says.

"I would describe my painting style as vibrant and colourful and the themes I have covered recently include injustice and the lack of love in the world."

She has a smile as bright and energy-filled as a lot of her paintings but one piece, Love, the World's Greatest Poverty, is mysterious and thought-provoking, having been inspired by a quotation from Mother Teresa: 'the lack of love is our world's greatest poverty'.

Patricia has displayed her work across the borough and recently created the 'inside-out house' at the newly refurbished Manor Farm, in Ruislip.

"The idea for the house came to me when I was researching how Anglo-Saxons lived. I thought it would be interesting to build a small wooden shed-like house and on the outside paint a scene from that time of how their lives might be and reverse it on the inside.

"I had some schoolchildren turn up and they helped me to paint it. I love to see children being creative so I let them just express themselves and paint the colours they liked."

Patricia's work, alongside that of fellow members of HillingdonArtists, is featured in an exhibition which begins on today (Wednesday) at Osterley House.

"We have many talented artists in Hillingdon and I would love to see something like a big warehouse which could be turned into a gallery to showcase the work produced by people in the borough," she says.

Despite the demands of her young family, she still produces on average two or three paintings per month.

Patricia adds: "For some reason Iseem to produce most of my work in the winter. I think it's because it's dark and cold outside and my paintings help me escape from the bad weather."

* To find out more about Patricia's work and HillingdonArtists, visit www.hillingdonartists.org