Crocodiles & tears

From my early childhood living on the edge of the rain forests in Papua New Guinea, I’ve been intrigued with Nature and all its intricately diverse connections. I played with giant bird eating spiders and snakes and often watched the antics of monkeys, sloths, wallabies and, further up in the highlands, crocodiles.

Although Britain doesn’t have the exotic environment of PNG, it has a rich diversity of natural habitats throughout the country. London has numerous parks and open spaces and I’m fortunate to live in Muswell Hill near to Hampstead Heath, Kenwood House and both Highgate and Queen’s Woods. Further afield are Woodberry and Walthamstow Wetlands, which are London Wildlife Trusts. There’s an amazing biodiversity of over 14,000 different species which share these spaces with us.

Apart from painting, I have been a healer for about 30 years. It was whilst healing that I realised many of my clients at some point while working with them broke down and cried. I realised I needed to understand what was happening inside them and what their tears had to do with why they had come to see me. I undertook and completed a Master’s Degree in Psychotherapy and Healing at Middlesex in 2006.

Signature

Although I use my name Simon Parr for my healing work, I had to change it for my paintings as there is already an artist by that name. My signatures on paintings have changed over the years but I now sign as Simon Hatchard Parr or just SHP.