Paintings of Women in Hospitality | International Women’s Day 2025

Staff at Ruda and Warmwell Holiday Park, will soon become the subjects of a New York exhibition following a visit from one of Britain's leading contemporary painters, Caroline Walker.

Often exploring the notion of ‘women’s work’, Caroline provides a unique window into the everyday lives of women, capturing specific spaces such as pharmacies, tailors, beauty salons, laboratories, bathhouses and modernist apartments. 

During her stay at Parkdean Resorts’ Ruda Holiday Park and Warmwell last summer, Caroline collaborated with the parks to go behind the scenes, observing and photographing female team members across Entertainment, Catering, and Beach Management. The photos served as the inspiration and source material for her upcoming series of paintings.

The Holiday Park paintings

Caroline’s upcoming exhibition, titled The Holiday Park, is due to be showcased at GRIMM gallery in New York from March 28 to May 2. Her observations from the North Devon holiday park, set to feature in the finished pieces, include female team members working in the restaurant kitchens and front of house, overseeing swimming sessions, and Ruda’s Beach Manager, Holly Robertson, leading beach cleans and activities for children and local primary school groups.

Artist Caroline Walker said: “Through my paintings I try to capture something of contemporary women’s experiences, often focusing on their working lives. I’m grateful to the team at Ruda for welcoming me and allowing me to experience such a wide range of exciting environments and dedicated staff.

“The highlights of my stay were observing the lifeguards at the swimming pool and meeting Holly, Ranger at Ruda, who was incredibly helpful and interesting to speak to while leading beach cleans, a pond dipping class, and a rock pooling session for a group of local primary school children. I think I have the makings of what could be a very interesting series of paintings, and I can’t wait to get started.”

Rob Warner, Operations Director at Parkdean Resorts, said: “It was a pleasure to welcome Caroline to Ruda Holiday Park. We employ almost 200 full-time team members, who work hard to create amazing memories for the thousands of families who visit the park each year. It’s an honour to have our team celebrated in Caroline’s paintings, and we can’t wait to see the finished artwork.”