A remarkable story of creativity and inspiration: The woman who discovered art at 88 and became an Instagram sensation
In a career spanning four decades as a curator, publisher, and gallerist, Matthew Higgs has been instrumental in nurturing the careers of many artists, including his contemporaries Jeremy Deller, Martin Creed, and Peter Doig, who emerged in the early 1990s. Higgs also champions artists from alternative backgrounds, those who are self-taught or have developmental or cognitive impairments, and his latest discovery is a testament to this. Christine Hazell, at 88 years old, had never made art until six months ago. Since then, she has created over 200 drawings, which have rapidly gone viral on Instagram, inspired a dedicated following, and will feature in four scheduled exhibitions. And, as if that weren't enough, Hazell is also Higgs' mother.
It all began in May when Higgs' sister, Gaby, an architect based between London and York, suggested that their mother, Hazell, try copying family photos to keep her occupied. Hazell, who lives in a 17th-century terraced cottage, discovered colored pencils and drawing pads left by her adult children. Her first drawings captured the faces of her children, grandchildren, great-grandchildren, and family dog, Kizzy. Since then, she has produced a new drawing every day, spending anywhere from 10 minutes to two hours on each portrait. Gaby, taken by her mother's absorption in this activity, began sending these drawings to her brother.
Higgs, who has lived in New York with his wife, American artist Anne Collier, since 2004, was intrigued to discover that drawing had ignited something in his mother. He decided to share her drawings on social media, highlighting the significance of these drawings by an elderly person who had never drawn before. He was fascinated by the idea of anyone who began making art in their 80s.
As we sit at the kitchen table where Hazell creates her drawings, Higgs observes a certain progression in her work. "She has quickly acquired a distinctive style and an independent view of the world by translating photos into drawings." When making her portraits, she chooses what to leave out and what to amplify. Higgs shares a video of Hazell drawing his nephews and niece when they were little, noting how she mentions how perfect they look in the photo and then 'spoils' that perfection by disrupting it in her drawing. She also described her drawing of a cat that looked 'like a nightmare,' emphasizing her unique approach to her subjects.
For Higgs, this story vindicates the idea that we are all inherently creative. "Allow someone the time, encouragement, and resources to be creative, and it will most likely happen."
Higgs' 65.3k Instagram followers have shown a surge of interest in Hazell's drawings, reacting with wonder to his weekly posts. The drawings have attracted praise from renowned figures like Tracey Emin, Jerry Saltz, and Alex Farquharson, and have inspired collaborations with UK gallerists. Florencia Clifford and Hugo Hildyard, owners of Partisan, a York restaurant and exhibition space for emerging art, will showcase Hazell's first selection, depicting 24 subjects from across Yorkshire, under the title 'Different Faces.'
London's Studio Voltaire will exhibit another group of drawings next July, and East Yorkshire's outsider art gallery, The Blacksmith's Shop, will include Hazell's art in their summer show in August 2026. After that, Hazell's drawings will cross the Atlantic to hang in White Columns.
Higgs concludes, "It only gets more interesting. Mum is becoming more confident, more certain of the way she edits a photo into a drawing. It's amazing that someone's ability to visualize things can accelerate so quickly, even as other aspects of their life slow down."
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