Enquiries: Contact me
Drawing has been central to my life since childhood—a way to empathise, reflect and deeply connect with both subject and self. Through decades of observation, I’ve developed an intuitive, responsive drawing process rooted in a deep understanding of form, composition, feel, expression and color.
Like an addict I get the compulsion to draw when I experience moments in life that I take notice of and they raise the hairs on the back of my neck! I see the beauty of the drape and pattern of a fabric following the shape of a figure. The rhythms, colours and shapes changed by weather and light in a landscape. A musician or dancers expression and movement that connects with me during a performance.
Each subject reveals and dictates how it wants the drawn or painted marks to be made - through rhythm, movement, light, or sound - and I respond instinctively, letting the unexpected lead. I stop when the marks align with the subject’s essence and the image holds presence. This is where I flourish: in the space between play, control and the excitement of accidental and unforeseen discovery.
I first knew that drawing was going to be important to me when I went on a school art trip to Chester Zoo. I found the monkey house and came across a bored chimpanzee who eyed me with interest. I sat opposite him and started drawing. He was intrigued by this strange human who was moving a stick around a piece of paper. I remember that day as the first step in my artistic journey. Drawing fascilitated this and over the years I have found that it has opened my life to connections to people and places that no other activity allows. The core of that visual and mental enquiry remains today whether I am drawing a dance class or in the landscape.
My formal artistic journey started at The Cheshire School of Art and Design followed by a degree at Manchester Polytechnic in the 1980's where I studied illustration. My tutors included David Hughes (childrens illustrator and caricaturist) & Tony Ross (childrens illustrator). I then completed a post graduate communications course at Central St Martins in London at the dawn of the internet. This transitioned me into the IT industry (25+years) working as a UX Designer for a wide range of companies in sectors such as Education, HR, Wellness and Finance. In that time I have kept one foot in the tech and one in the fine art world. In the last few years I have completed a year at The Royal Drawing School on their Post graduate Online Drawing Development Year (2022-23). Recently I have completed a year at The Newlyn Art School on The figure course with tutors Rob Unett and Faye Dobbinson. This has further broadened my style and process in my dance and observational life drawing.
I draw something from the world around me every day, it's the bedrock of my art practice. The subject dictates the level of enquiry and discovery. I see myself more as a recording device using my drawing and painting skills to capture life as it unfolds around me. Of course this is now also online in the digital sphere as much as painting the real world. I flip between drawing a fashion illustration one day to painting live dance or roam the landscape en plein air with oils and canvas. The more I draw and paint the richer and more varied my mark making library expands in complexity and range enabling me to capture more and more complex subjects with confidence.
I believe that the subjects you capture dictate what medium to use, as the subject invokes a felt expressive response that guides the language of a type of mark and range of media. When capturing live dance for instance the feel and expression of a dancer requires a media that enables a fast intuitive response on a large surface area. I only employ traditional artistic rules and conventions such as color usage and composition when it suits the aims of the work in hand.
I avoid ever repeating myself and try to use new materials and approaches to challenge and provoke new visual outcomes. This increases the failure but out of that constant experimentation come breakthroughs and happy accidents that lead you down new artistic paths. New discovery is only born from trial and error and borrowing ideas from those who trod the road before you, employing them in a new way.
As you look through my artwork you will see the wide variety of genres I have worked in whether its drawing fashion, dance, illustrating literature, fine art printmaking, plein air landscape painting or 3d digital design. The common denominator is that the inspiration is primarily from real life.
What is more important than the outcome is the experience of the creative journey.
I have worked consistenly for over 30+ years as a Freelance Illustrator, Fine Art Printmaker (member of Oxford Printmakers Cooperative).
My latest illustration work focuses on:
Observational drawing is at the core of all my creative output in whatever medium. I am always looking for subjects and situations that will spark a visual idea and provide inspiration from real-life observations, continuously exploring subjects and scenarios to stimulate visual concepts.
Capturing movement of the human form has been an obsession for over 10 years after my first collaborations with choreographer and dancer Luke Brown. I have experimented with ever medium available to me and have settled predominantly on ink and brush on paper. The painting and drawing has to be done live with the subject to connect with the dancer in a physical and intellectual way. There are references to traditional Chinese calligraphy involving breathing and control of the body as you apply the pigment to the surface. It takes me at least 30mins to reach the flow state where my mind, body and observational sense are in parity with the subject. It takes years of practice to have the tools to process and condense the visual information of a moving subject. When looking at my dance paintings your have to allow your brain to decode the captured marks and reveal the feel, energy and expression of the dancers.
I have been printmaking for over 25 years as a member of the Oxford Printmakers Cooperative. I work in a number of processes including etching, relief printing such as linocut and wood engraving. recently I have been focusing on monoprinting as this is close to painting and allows me freedom of expression. Subjects are driven by my observational drawing practice.
Image: My daughter Izzy beachcombing, etching (2 plates)
Since my fiirst life drawing class in my early 20's at art school I have regularly attended a class every week. This discipline is another core element to my observational drawing practice. A range of life drawings are available as canvas and paper prints, greeting cards and postcards.
Image: Manko in colored pencil and watercolor on paper (size AO)
Wherever I am in the world I have a sketchbook and a bundle of drawing materials to hand. Keeping is simple often a humble block of compressed charcoal is my favourite medium. I also paint in oil and watercolor and draw en plein regularly chasing the light in a landscape. Recently I have been in Mexico responding in watercolor to the extreme bright light and high chroma colors.
Image: Charcoal drawing (A3) of Isola Bella island off Taormina, Italy
When drawing from my imagination I start with a visual trigger from life, then take it on a playful journey.
Image: Metaflora, imagined meta beasts inspired by Rhododendron flowers (pen and ink on board)
