Art Safari was founded by Mary-Anne Bartlett in 1999, a unique independent travel company specialising in curating painting expeditions worldwide and delivering expert art tuition to thousands of creatives. Our small team at Art Safari HQ sitting on the Ferry Quay in Woodbridge, Suffolk, are devoted in providing guests with amazing experiences and a sketchbook full of memories. Meet them below!
Founder and Director
Mary-Anne had the idea for Art Safari in 1999 while travelling in Malawi. She returned to the UK and ran the first overseas tour in 2003 to Malawi and Zambia.
Mary-Anne’s art education spanned Suffolk College for her Foundation, Exeter University and Art Collage BA Comb Hons, and the Ecole des Arts Decoratifs in Strasbourg, France for her MA.
Her huge joy to travel and paint with like-minded people over the years fuelled her passion to found Art Safari, a travel professional company that has taken her to all corners of the globe for over two decades. Mary-Anne’s hometown of Woodbridge has been a trampoline for the rest of the world, taking her from Europe, the Americas, Africa, Asia, Antarctica and all the way to the Artic regions.
Mary-Anne’s favourite destination is possibly Malawi in the heart of Africa. where it all began – but there are many close contenders. When she isn’t travelling and painting you can find her kayaking on the River Deben in Woodbridge.
Head of Operations
Hollie joined in early 2022 and comes from an adventure travel industry background.
She has travelled to many off-beat destinations around the world including Bhutan, Sudan, Algeria, Iran, Iraq, Lebanon, Malawi, Guatemala, Brazil, Ecuador and Uzbekistan, but has also travelled extensively around Europe and India.
Travel highlights include working at the Rio Carnival, a solo backpacking trip around Syria, and doing an internship at a publishing house in New Delhi for a time.
When not planning adventures, Hollie can usually be found with her nose in a book, checking out the latest films at the local cinema, and cuddling cats. She also dabbles in a bit of sketching, focusing mainly on people, birds and animals – her sketchbooks are a delight.
Travel Manager and Marketing Coordinator
Harriet joined us in September 2023, with a BA Hons degree in Animation Production and as a qualified RYA Senior Sailing Instructor. Harriet is our guru for all the film editing for the virtual events. Harriet loves the detail, she will help you decide which tour is right for you and help book flights for you. She is an artist and also has a small independent art business called Memory Holmes.
Her travels have taken her to the Himalayan mountains in Nepal, the Haute-Savoie region of France visiting Lake Annecy for an animation festival. She has been adventuring to the Bahamas on an Art meets Science workshop with the Bimini Shark Lab, where she loved sketching underwater and swimming with several different species of shark. She has joined an Art Safari to Zambia’s South Luangwa’s National Park.
Harriet also enjoys snorkelling in Cornwall and Wales, as seen here in Pembrokeshire.
Book-keeper
Debbie studied ATOL Travel Training at Colchester and worked in travel companies for many years before retraining as a book-keeper. Her presence at Art Safari HQ once a week adds to the fun of the office. She brings with her a wealth of experience and keeps our accounts and our returns totally up to date, working closely with Mary-Anne for all those hoops we have to leap through in this heavily regulated industry.
Her favourite place (outside Suffolk) is Seville, the atmosphere of this beautiful city made her want to live there.
Debbie has a weakness for bacon rolls and spaniels.
Jemma joined our team in July 2023, fresh from Lancaster University with a First Class degree in Fine Art and a head full of creative ideas.
A lover of colour, chaos, and all things vibrant, Jemma has travelled far and wide across Africa and Asia, with India stealing her heart.
Last October, she packed her paintbrushes and set off on a seven-month backpacking adventure that saw her swimming with whale sharks in the Maldives, motorbiking through Vietnam’s Ha Giang mountains, and trekking deep into jungle trails. She scuba-dived, explored ancient temples, and drank more cups of tea than she can count.
Her most unforgettable moment has to be locking eyes with Arrowhead, the queen tiger of Ranthambore, a once-in-a-lifetime encounter that left her absolutely spellbound.
Now back from her travels, Jemma brings that same spirit of adventure, curiosity, and colour to everything she does with us.
Travel Admin & Marketing Co-ordinator
Caryn joined us in October 2025 having recently relocated to Suffolk, to fulfil her dream of living by the sea.
Caryn comes with a wealth of experience in media and travel. As a former TV producer she has filmed various BBC programmes abroad, including Holiday 10 Best. More recently, as a lecturer in media production she has taken hundreds of students on trips all over the world, from Shanghai to Seville.
A lifelong traveller, she loves planning trips and creating itineraries as well as exploring the countries she’s visiting. Highlights include trekking in Northern Thailand, scuba diving on the Great Barrier Reef and flying over the Grand Canyon. Her most recent trip was a a solo tour of Marrakesh, where she enjoyed a sunset camel ride in the Atlas Mountains.
Caryn is also a huge art fan and loves to visit galleries in her spare time. In the past couple of years she has dared to dabble herself, and has been enjoying experimenting in watercolour and printmaking. She is really loving the process of painting, finding this a really mindful, enjoyable practice.
Travel Admin and Marketing Coordinator
Ellie joined the team in October 2025, recently returned from a six-month backpacking trip around South-East Asia.
Ellie’s travel highlights included snorkelling in the Philippines, exploring the ancient temples of Angkor Wat and hiking volcanoes in Indonesia, with her favourite moments of all being getting lost on a motorbike in Laos, meeting some of the kindest people she had ever encountered. A close second was all the different foods she had the opportunity to try!
In this photo, she had just reached the summit of Mount Ijen, Indonesia – one of the best memories of her time away, despite the overwhelming smell of sulphur.
Until her next trip, Ellie can usually be found reading a book, painting or spending time with friends.