MY STORY
Born in Geraldton, I moved to Cottesloe as a very young child and spent my childhood literally growing up on the beach. It was an absolute treasure trove of discovery with the abundant ocean, the rock pools, the ever-changing seasons and the beautiful colours.
My dream was to become a commercial artist but upon leaving school I was sent off to Underwoods Business College to ensure I had a ‘sensible’ career. Following completion of the year, I worked at UWA Speech and Music Department for a year but found it unrewarding. I then set off on a ten-year sojourn of travel around Australia, New Zealand, the Mediterranean, Israel, Ireland, UK and Europe. I landed back in WA to the Gascoyne region where I spent six months prospecting for gold and then lay roots in Dampier where I lived for the next seven years.
SEARCHING
Throughout that time I was always searching, however, never quite sure what it was I was looking for. Following on from my childhood dream, over the years I undertook multiple courses in drawing, water-colour painting, silk painting, textiles and even a full year of design at TAFE. I fully embraced each and every course and absolutely loved the solace I gained from getting in touch with my creative side, however, by this stage there was a mortgage, a wonderful family and every day life helped me to decide to put my dreams on hold.
Painting to me is a meditation; I can begin a new painting first thing in the morning and the next time I look at the clock its 3 p.m. One aspect I love about my style is that quite a few of my paintings have hidden images within them and its fun to stand back and discover how it’s evolving. The creative process for me is very spiritual and because of this rewarding and fulfilling. All of my pieces are immensely personal and reflect back to very significant times throughout my life.
When I’m too busy to start a new project I find my mind wandering through colours, shapes and subjects and always have a painting waiting to emerge. As my style develops and evolves, the journey of discovering new techniques spurs me on to explore, experiment and attempt new approaches to enhance my work.
MY ARTISTIC APPROACH
The thoughts and ideas are gathered from colourful memories taken from the tapestry of my life; so there’s an endless stream to draw upon. Settling on one image can be inspired from a mood, particular colour palette, from nature or something that’s triggered me to recall a memory or feeling.
The method I use to apply the paint to the canvas is by pouring. This begins by thinning and mixing the individual colours in small jars or tins and the paint is quite literally poured on to the canvas that lays flat on the table. By tipping, rolling, blending or manipulating the paints with a brush or other tool, the paints begin to merge or bleed into each other and so the image begins to emerge. It’s a magical, enthralling process.
This can be achieved in one pour or several, after allowing each layer to dry. Mixed media can be used or a multitude of other techniques used to achieve the final image. There are times when I sit back and study the painting and see other smaller images appear within, and so will go back and work on these to enhance them.
There are times I have started with a clear picture of my final image but throughout the procedure it develops into something quite different. It’s this serendipitous process that makes it such fun and quite addictive.
PERTH ARTIST WORKSHOPS
I teach the methods I describe here in my Perth Artist Workshops for beginners and experienced painters.
See examples in my available works or previous collections.
