On 15^th March, artist Dawn Reader will embark on another inspirational Polar Voyage with travel company Aqua-Firma, this time across the Antarctic Polar Circle.  This will be Dawn's second polar expedition with Aqua-Firma, having previously explored the Arctic wilderness of Spitsbergen - the realm of the polar bear.

Whilst Dawn is exploring the deep south, many of her Arctic paintings will be on show in two galleries in London.  From 5^th to 27^th March her work will be on display at the Northcote Gallery in Clapham, London; and until 13^th March her paintings will on display at the prestigious W H Patterson gallery in Albemarle Street, Piccadilly, London.  A percentage of the sales from Dawn's paintings will be contributed to the Polar Conservation Organisation.

This is what Dawn has to say about her art and the inspiration the polar regions provide:

"I have been painting the sea for as long as I can remember. What I love most is the quality of the light. But when the first 'proper snow' fell in London in 2008, I found myself captivated by the early-morning silence and brightness that enveloped the City.

Having long been drawn to the Atlantic, Baltic and North seas, I began to wonder what it would be like to go further north where the oceans are covered in ice and the ground is frosted over. So in the summer of 2009, I took my first Arctic trip on a North Spitsbergen voyage with Aqua-Firma; returning in early 2010 with a visit to Iceland. In Spitsbergen in particular, I probed every angle: sketching at a distance from the deck of our polar vessel; zooming in close on a zodiac; I donned crampons to hike across glaciers; and explored the ice caves below.

I was blown away by the landscape; it is lonely, bleak, craggy and treacherous - but also somehow majestic and free and beautiful. It is these qualities I have tried to capture in my paintings, simplifying and softening the topography and using a limited and somewhat muted palette to convey the stillness and tranquillity I found there.

Painting ice has been a complete departure for me, and I have loved the challenge. But my expeditions to the Arctic have been a first in another sense too; I became acutely aware of its fragility. Global warming and pollution have become serious hazards to the Polar Regions; the icecaps are melting, the environment and the wildlife are threatened. It's not just the polar bears; I fell in love with the little auks, tiny puffin-like creatures that clumsily fly around and nest on the island cliffs. I hope that, through my work, I manage not only to convey the immense unspoiled beauty of the Arctic, but also to raise awareness of the need for its preservation. One of the reasons I chose to travel with Aqua-Firma is that they offset the carbon emissions of each client's polar voyage. Many of their voyages are also under sail - experiences which reduce carbon emissions by about 90%.

Now my paintings are being exhibited in London, I'm left wondering if the light, the seas and the ice are any different in the Antarctic, so decided to book another trip with Aqua-Firma, this time crossing the Antarctic Circle to find out.  Unlike the Arctic, there is not the risk of polar bears, so I shall be able to sit and sketch in safety on shore.  I never thought I would like these extreme, cold places but I love them and feel compelled to return to see what comes from this next adventure..."

Throughout her forthcoming voyage to the white continent, Dawn will visit dramatic coastlines with 3,000 metre high mountain peaks mile long icebergs and towering glaciers. She can also expect close encounters with gentoo, chinstrap and adelie penguins, whales, dolphins and top Antarctic predator, the Leopard Seal.

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