About us
Hello there!
My name is Cheryl Reeves and I am the artist behind Moorwishes, Mark, my husband, is responsible for sales and you will meet him at any events or markets we attend.
This is our story:
"The essence of all beautiful art ... is gratitude"
I am a self-taught artist and have been painting now for about 16 or so years. I love painting. It makes me happy, so I paint happy art, it is as simple as that!
But this has not always been the case.
"It is never too late to be what you might have been"
I have always been creative, but I made the wrong career choice and ended up as a local government lawyer for about 20 years. It was not a job I enjoyed much, and unfortunately, reached a point where I was unable to continue. I guess it was like trying to bash a square peg into a round hole,
I had to do something creative to help myself. I discovered mixed media, delighted to find something that appeared to have no rules (I am not very good with "do's" and "don'ts"! I started by painting small canvases layering different colours of paint and then adding a textile piece to it. It took a couple of years to work out what I really loved doing and to develop my own style.
My business name of Moorwishes was inspired by a tiny book I wrote for my children when they were young containing wishes for their future. Based on the legends of wishing trees found in many cultures, I wrote about a tree on which you tie your wishes. As Dartmoor is a rather magical place with many interesting and wizened old trees it seemed the perfect setting for a Wishing Tree.
Out of this sprung the Dartmoor Wishing Tree. Here wishes are tied to the tree in the hope they will come true. Many of the early gifts and cards I made were inspired by the Wishing Tree and Moorwishes seemed to be an ideal business name.
"Spread love and understanding, positivity"
Ideas have grown from this, and with my love of our wonderful countryside and the desire to spread a little positivity, I paint pretty positive paintings. Many of my paintings are a glimpse into the land of Moorwishes where flowers laugh, the daisies party and the trees whisper words of encouragement. Moorwishes is my Narnia, my Wonderland, a colourful, peaceful, happy place and you are welcome to join me.
In more recent years, after being commissioned to paint a seascape, I have discovered the sheer joy of painting ocean colours. It also gives me an excuse of visiting the most beautiful seaside places in Cornwall and Devon for inspiration. There is nothing I like better than standing on a cliff looking at the beautiful turquoise and blue waters below with the wind in my hair and the sound of choughs calling!
I am at my happiest when I am painting and I love the idea that I may be able to transfer some of this happiness to the viewer of my art.
"Alone we can do so little; together we can do so much"
In 2016, Mark, my lovely husband, who had already supported me through this time, joined me full time to form our Moorwishes partnership. Mark took charge of sales, going out to markets and other events. He says he is responsible for sales, transport, logisitics and reaching high shelves!
In this year we also opened our bricks and mortar shop in Tavistock.
We love our work, from painting, creating and designing to meeting people at market and events.
We hope you enjoy Moorwishes Happy Art.
