My earlier education was academic ( modern languages at Oxford), and after taking my degree I went on to train as a teacher. When I then found myself at home bringing up my family, I began my art training principally under Mike Biddulph, from the Royal Academy Schools. He opened up to me the fuller possibilities of drawing, based on the study of the human figure. This has been the lynch-pin of my work to this day. Life studies remain one of my central themes in both drawing and painting.
My work is based around a solid knowledge of, and skill in, drawing. My fascination has always been primarily with the human figure and face, sometimes as objects of close scrutiny in their own right, sometimes in the context of broader themes and compositions. I become more and more interested as time goes by, in the idea of departing from the literal appearance of my chosen subject and expressing myself in terms of colour and pattern as well as line.
I always enjoy working in ways which contrast with each other - so work that is very loose and free can appear side by side with tighter, more meticulous drawing. The choice of medium will correspond to the intention of the piece I am trying to create, and in turn may influence the final outcome. Mastery of materials and creative skills is obviously vital to this process, and I consider my own personal strengths to lie in the use of line and colour.
I have as it were several strings to my bow, or several avenues of expression - painting in oil on canvas, drawing in different media, a growing interest in lino-printing. As well as a fine-artist I am also a cartoonist, and to a lesser degree an illustrator and designer ( see for example this year’s Street Child Africa Christmas card). I do not find that any of these disciplines conflict with each other, but are actually complementary, and I think the common ground they share is my ability in drawing and my interest in the human form - e.g. the link between portraiture and cartoons.
I am very happy to discuss carrying out commissions to suit individual requirements. Past commissions include portraits of adults and children (and some cats) as well as compositions based more loosely on organic forms producing images of a more abstract and decorative nature. I enjoy the process of ‘reading’ the requirements of the client and giving substance to what he sees in his mind.