The woman from Cardiff who paints celebrity portraits using her mouth

Rosaleen Moriarty-Simmonds OBE from the Cyncoed area of Cardiff has been preparing for an art exhibition, by painting without using her hands.

She is a mouth painter, and is currently working on a series of portraits of Welsh celebrities. 

Some of the icons include Dame Sian Phillips and Russell T Davies, and the proceeds will be donated to charity. 

In an interview on ITV Cymru Wales’ arts programme, Backstage, Rosie said: “I started painting at school - thoroughly enjoyed it, much more than maths or anything like that.

“A friend of mine is a member of the Mouth and Foot Painting Artists’ Association. He kept on and on at me to put together a portfolio. 

Rosie was affected by the thalidomide tragedy, which meant she was born without arms or legs.

“I waited for about six to eight months, and thought, ‘Oh well, nothing’s going to come of it’ but it did. There are 800 of us around the world, 28 in the United Kingdom, but I’m the only one in Wales.”

Often, people may come across Rosie’s work initially unaware of the method carried out to complete the painting. 

Rosie said: “I actually get a big buzz when people look at a piece of my artwork and they don’t know that I’ve painted it by mouth.

“But, also, people are fascinated about how something is painted, how you specifically have come at it, and how you’ve actually painted it.”

Born in 1960, Rosie was affected by the thalidomide tragedy, after her mother was prescribed the drug when carrying her. 

This meant she was born without arms or legs, and has campaigned for disability rights from a young age. 

She feels this sometimes inspires her work “because if something is challenging, then you think ‘well, I’m not going to let it beat me’.”

Due to the thousands of birth defects caused by the medication, thalidomide was taken off the European market in 1961. 

When asked whether she feels fewer people are now aware of the history of the tragedy, she replied: “Definitely.” 

Some of the icons she has painted include Russell T Davies, and the proceeds will be donated to charity. 

“But, then of course they see people like myself on television.

“People are allowed to ask [me] any question that they want to. 

“One of the funniest questions I got from a dentist was ‘I hope you look after your teeth’, - yes, I do, thank goodness… it’s my tool.” 

Looking ahead to the future, Rosie told Backstage: “I don’t want to stop, I want to keep going.

“It would be nice to get, I don’t know, maybe a hotel to say ‘I’d like to display some of your work’.”

In the meantime, over the next few months, Rosie will be finalising her pieces for her exhibition in January. Although, the deadline feels much sooner, as oil paintings can take months to dry. 

The portrait exhibition, in aid of NSPCC Cymru, will run from Friday 10th - Monday 13th January at the Clarendon Fine Art Gallery in Cardiff. 

  • Watch Rosaleen Moriarty-Simmonds full interview on Backstage, Friday at 7pm on ITV Cymru Wales and later online.

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