Artist gives hand scare brush-off to paint again

WHEN artist Leo du Feu first experienced a mild tingling sensation in his right hand while painting, he didn't think too much of it.

Just weeks later, he was diagnosed with repetitive strain injury (RSI) in both his hands, casting doubts over his career as a full-time artist.

The 26-year-old from Linlithgow, who predominantly paints landscape and wildlife pictures, was instructed by his doctor to down tools for six months, and has only recently picked up his paintbrush again. He said: "I absolutely love painting, so being told I couldn't do it for six months was quite depressing and I have gone through phases of feeling very low."

Last summer, Edinburgh-born Leo spent six weeks travelling across Canada, drawing and painting, after receiving a prestigious Royal Over-Seas League Arts Commonwealth Travel Scholarship.

It was during then he experienced the first symptoms of RSI. He said: "It felt like almost nothing to start with, just a mild tingling sensation.

"I ignored it for a day or two but it was getting rapidly worse when I was drawing and painting."

Within a week, Leo was experiencing the symptoms - which also included numbness and cramp - all the time.

Leo started to paint with his left hand, but it wasn't long before he started experiencing the same symptoms. He was diagnosed with ulnar neuritis, a common form of RSI, in August 2010.

"I've more or less had to stop painting, drawing and writing for the past six months," he said.

"But the news is finally good; my symptoms are slowly starting to get better thanks to physiotherapy, rest and hours of exercises."

Recent tests found no signs of any nerve damage, so an operation is not required. However, Leo is having to rethink the way that he works

He said: "The majority of my paintings are called miniature landscapes, which are very small and very detailed. They can be as small as 10cm by 10cm, so I am holding my arm up really quite tensely while working on them.

"I won't be able to work in that detailed style now. I'm experimenting with trying out larger works and different techniques that allow me to be a bit looser with my hand."

Leo's landscape and wildlife paintings from Canada will be exhibited at The Line Gallery in Linlithgow in June and July, while his book, Sketches from Canada, is now available.

He added: "I consider myself an optimist. This has happened and that's that. I'm finally working again and it's great."