Profile, Artist's Statement and Exhibitions

Born in 1956 I live and work in Market Harborough, a typical market town in Leicestershire at the heart of The East Midlands. From an early age drawing and painting fascinated me. My schoolwork was frequently punctuated with lovingly crafted, detailed coloured pictures. By necessity I am self-taught since I was unable to take the place offered to me on a Fine Art degree course.

The main subjects in my pictures are people. Drawn from immediate family, friends and contacts known to me and occasionally completely anonymous, they are used to populate an environment created to express an emotion. The people painted will be recognisable but they are not painted as portraits. It is important to me that they have weight and the appearance of flesh and tissue.

I generally start with a photograph or photographs of the main subject which I use to map out positioning of the people on the panel. A great deal of time will be taken over this initial composition until I feel I happy with the sizing and interaction of the people. Other elements that go to into the picture will only be held as a broad idea in my head and they may change as the painting progresses.

The start of the painting is a panel. I use a traditional recipe to prepare gesso from hide glue and whiting, applied by brush in seven or eight coats to MDF board. Once sanded the surface has the appearance of porcelain and feels like ivory to the touch. Over the past four years I have determined to make all my pictures fit onto 40cm square panels. This gives both a compositional challenge and yet, strangely takes away some of those initial worries of how big to make the work.

I make the painting working in egg tempera. Sometimes I work rapidly using short single strokes and at other times methodically laying down small pools of colour. Much of the painting�s area will consist of pure colours laid next to each other or transparent glazes allowing underlying colours to shine through. This optical mixing gives vibrancy to the surface.

Over the years I have absorbed a broad range of influences. I will continue to be receptive to new ideas that will improve my craftsmanship, using durable materials and techniques that have stood the test of time. I try to create an atmosphere, reflect an emotion, capture a mood and make each work shine like a little gem.

Details of preparatory work undertaken on 'Venetian Blind'.

Exhibitions

2012

2011

2010

2009

2002 - 2008

1990 � 2001

The Royal Academy

1988

1987

1986

1984