Hi! I'm Tracey
First and foremost, I must tell you that I love watercolour and I love teaching it too! I paint at home in my little studio (previously a dark, cold, spider infested garage, that was too small to actually get the car into) which has views across to the beautiful Surrey Hills. I’ve been lucky to live in Surrey all of my life (apart from a very brief pop across the border to Kent where I met my husband!). My home is completed by my gorgeous daughter, a mildly miffed cat called Smudge and a lively (very lively) Labradoodle.
I have loved drawing and creating for as long as I can remember ~ the thrill of putting pen, pencil or brush to paper is something which remains with me and probably always will. Art is ever changing and always surprising ~ every day is different and holds new opportunities! I feel really lucky to be able to do what I love and share that love of all things creative with others.
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Aim of Classes
My Journey
Diversifying
I started Welcome to the Drawing Room (Now Tracey Bengeyfield Art) in 2012 with the aim of bringing accessible and relaxed art classes to Surrey, where like-minded people could meet up and just enjoy being creative without the pressure of formal critiques or exams.
At Tracey Bengeyfield Art, my aim is to get you to engage more with the world around you and inspire you. Engaging with nature, even just for five minutes is good for the soul and a great way to relax, slow down and be mindful. You will see the world with fresh eyes when you start painting!
After graduating with a degree in Graphics & Media, I worked in a design studio until answering the call of teaching. In 1999 I graduated from Brighton University with a PGCE and began teaching Art and Graphics in a Secondary school. Although I loved teaching, paperwork always seemed to get in the way and I rarely had the chance to pick up a paintbrush and develop my own work. With this in mind, I sought out a new challenge which would allow me the time to both paint and teach. So in 2012 I took a leap of faith, quit teaching and started my own business (did anyone mention paperwork, tax returns, worksheets...)!
​​After teaching watercolour for five years and expanding from one class a week to four, I decided life wasn’t hectic enough and started to make a range of homewares, to sell at exhibitions and fairs. I dusted off my sewing machine and started small (quite literally) making lavender bags and mugs. These items sold well alongside my cards and paintings.
However, the interruption of Covid put a stop to all the arty socials ~ so like many others I took the time to think about which direction I wanted to take my business. This is when I rebranded to Tracey Bengeyfield Art and launched my Online Watercolour School!
In 2019, after ousting the spiders and converting the aforementioned garage, I finally upgraded from painting on my lap in my living room, to painting at a desk in my brand new studio. This has been a real game changer, as I now have a place to store my artwork, art paraphernalia and my ever expanding art library which was taking over the house! Unfortunately it’s too small to hold any classes in, but it’s just big enough to use as a small exhibition space on open days and more importantly, it means I can now leave my work in progress on my desk without the dog or cat jumping on it... Paradise!