Amanda Hicks

BORN 1951

Amanda Hicks was born and grew up on the Isles of Scilly, off the coast of Cornwall. Her parents were friends with Jim and Helen Ede, who would visit the family at their home on St Agnes. Aged 12, Hicks left the island to attend boarding school on mainland Cornwall. Isles of Scilly and Launch from St Mary’s and St Agnes, both created when Hicks was 13 years old, were inspired by her recollections of the lobster pots on the beach and the boisterous seas around the islands. Painted a couple of years later, Tresco, Isles of Scilly depicts a calm and idyllic vision of the islands, informed by her yearning for the landscapes of her childhood. Jim Ede secured open invitations for Hicks to visit the St Ives studios of Ben Nicholson and Barbara Hepworth, but discouraged her from attending art school, admiring the directness of her painting style. Hicks now lives on St Agnes where she and her husband, Adrian Pearce, owned and ran a flower shop.