I am a self-taught artist living and working in Prestwood, Buckinghamshire. My paintings vary widely in style and subject matter: from ‘classical’ landscapes to vibrant cityscapes; from figurative ‘mood’ paintings inspired by nature, to semi-abstract studies of rock formations and watercolours of chickens and sheep.
Many different things and experiences interest me. I try to be always expanding my knowledge and experience. This sense of excitement at life drives my creative side forward.
Although I paint in acrylic, oil and watercolour, at present I am really into pushing colour and technique in acrylics. Experimentation is huge fun and usually results in something being learned that can be applied to future work. And then sometimes you just make mistakes and have to start again!
Last year I had to produce two big paintings for a house in Hawaii. Working on really large pieces was a revelation: the process of painting becomes more physical, using your arms with wide strokes, ducking down and reaching up. I love it. As a result, a lot of recent work has been quite large, 6’ by 4’ or 4’ x 4’. I had to move out of my studio into the garage to accommodate the canvasses. Working bigger somehow freed me up to more experiments in style and technique: I have started using spray paint, varnish and applying paint by palette knife as well as by brush.
Right now I am getting ready for Open Studios: some paintings I thought I would finish in time for are still unfinished; commissions I promised would be ready are not quite done, and the studio needs a token clean-up. I keep waking up with another to-do list forming in my head: it’s a stressful but exciting time!
Doing Open Studios was daunting the first time but it has gotten easier, with many returning visitors and new faces each year. As a painter, my natural state is to spend a lot of time alone in my studio: I need the space to think, solve problems and paint, but meeting people and talking about what I do does me good! The comments people make about the work always move me on creatively.
My opening hours for Bucks Open Studios are Thursday thru Sunday, 1 pm to 6 pm. Stop by if you can, you will be really welcome!