The Jerwood Drawing Prize toured to the University of Gloucestershire when I studied Fine Art there between 2007 and 2010. I remember invigilating the show in the bright gallery that we had on our Pittville campus, welcoming visitors and reading through the catalogue.

I've kept the Jerwood Drawing Prize close to my heart ever since, each year I look forward to the announcement of who has been accepted and who has won each of the prizes. Last year I took the trip to London alone to see the exhibition, this year I took friends to see it in Cheltenham at The Wilson Art Gallery and Museum.

I love how the exhibition sparks a debate about what drawing is. This year a few charcoal and oil pastel smudges on paper, hundreds of little pieces of thread stitched into paper and the sound of a womans voice feature.

My eye was immediately drawn to Vertical Panorama: Oak Tree by Hannah Downing.

It's no secret that I love trees, landscapes and themes surrounding nature and countryside. The unusual perspective and the beautiful skill with which the artist has captured the texture in the tree bark grabbed me.

Detail of Vertical Panorama: Oak Tree by Hannah Downing — Detail of Vertical Panorama: Oak Tree by Hannah Downing

Every piece in the show had something to offer, I was intrigued to hear the sound piece that won first prize this year. The sound of a woman describing an unknown object by artist Alison Carlier.

Exhibition view of the Jerwood Drawing Prize

There Are No Owls by Gary Edwards also stuck out for me, the working and reworking of the surface in an attempt to explore mark making techniques has left an interesting image with no real subject but lots of depth.

It was an interesting year to walk around for me as I actually submitted three drawings for consideration and was rejected. It was the first year that I felt confident enough in my work to enter and I'm glad I did even though my work didn't make the cut this year.

I wanted to write a little something about stepping out of your comfort zone.

I've been making detailed drawings since the third year of my BA in 2010 and have developed a style of drawing that is quite distinctive. I've built up a portfolio of drawings over the last few years, starting with landscapes drawn in pencil of places special to me. I then moved on to pen drawings of fragmented landscapes which resembled delicate pieces of lace.

But just because I've spent a few years making small scale detailed drawings doesn't mean that this is all I'm capable of. I was so glad that in the final semester of my MA I took a leap and decided to do something different. I ordered some big boards and bought blackboard paint and chalk and started drawing. The process of drawing couldn't have been further from what I'm used to, working from life, drawing the view out of the studio window, using a material so unfamiliar.

The whole process was daunting but exciting, with a final MA exhibition to prepare for and little time to do it the pressure was on. If my drawings were a flop I'd have to live with them.

In the end I was pleased with my blackboard drawings and I felt that if I hadn't made them then I wouldn't really have made the most of my MA. I stepped out of my comfort zone and did something that I'd never done before.

I think if we don't challenge ourselves then we'll never evolve. It's good to try something new because even if you don't succeed you'll at least have learned something.

Drawing In My Studio at Winchester School of Art, U.K.