For some useful resources, including inspirational art and some excellent websites and books for artists, visit my links page.
About Me
I've been creating art, in one form or another, for most of my life. The need to make things runs deep, whether it be a painting, a patchwork quilt, a knitted jumper or a bar of handmade soap. Carving out time for creativity, around work and family commitments, is what keeps me sane.
Since I caught the watercolour bug in 2020, I've begun to paint almost exclusively in this medium, taking most of my inspiration from nature and the many beautiful places around my local area of Twickenham, in SW London.
Occasionally I ponder the dreaded question of an 'artist's statement'. Can I come up with words to explain why I paint, or what I'm trying to say? For now, I will simply say that I do it for the love of it. And if a person happens upon one of my paintings and experiences a moment of stillness, or a sudden, unbidden chill, or a spark of wonder at the miracle of a raindrop-covered cobweb, then I will be delighted.
Education and Training
When it comes to watercolour painting, I am largely self-taught. However, this does not give enough credit to the fantastic community of artists who share their knowledge generously online, over platforms like YouTube, SkillShare, Facebook, TikTok and Instagram.
Without these brilliant people helping, sharing, inspiring and critiquing along every step of the way, through multiple lockdowns, my watercolour journey would have been so much more lonely and arduous.
In terms of more formal education, I gained a Foundation Diploma at art college before studying History of Art at university. This led me into a lifelong love affair with art through the ages, from early Renaissance frescoes to modern masters.
Since then, I've taken many varied art classes over the years. The most valuable by far was the hands-on training that I received in the workshop of Dr David Cranswick, a specialist teacher in the Materials and Techniques of Medieval and Renaissance Painters. In David's studio I spent many a happy week learning time-honoured techniques, such as how to grind my own oil paints from natural pigments, or how to build up an oil painting using layers of traditional glazes or how to work with egg tempera and gold leaf in the style of an early renaissance master.
In the last couple of years I've had to work hard at un-learning many of these techniques, in order to get to grips with the contrary beast that is watercolour. I do still forget myself at times and can be overly liberal with my paint application - but I'll get there in the end!
