Artist's Statement
General Overview
The inspiration for my painting comes from several different areas of interest.
The landscape, animals, my environment, and the study of the human form.
In the Landscapes, I use nature as a starting point.
The splendour of the rainforest and the rural farmland here
on the east coast of Australia, has both beauty and complexity.
Responding to these influences I seek to convey the emotional tie to this visual world;
finding the essence of a landscape through colour.
Dog Portraits have developed through a life long love of dogs
and an on-going concern about animal welfare in general.
By depicting the dogs in large scale portraits is an attempt
to pay homage to these sociable creatures and to draw
the viewer into the heart and mind of our ‘best friend’.
The Country Life series is an autobiographical area of work, which includes
interiors, garden-scapes, chickens and still life paintings. It is a pictorial diary
of simple everyday things which can be overlooked in our fast-paced world.
By focusing on these ordinary scenes I aim to
describe a less complicated side to our lives.
My Figurative Works extend through life studies,
the observation of contemporary attitudes and traditional work
which can involve a visual dialogue, between the past and present
exploring the themes of love and loss, both real and imagined.
This different subject matter is both challenging and rewarding.
It gives me flexibility while encouraging the creative process
and allows for a refreshed approach to each new body of work.
Member of:
- The National Association of the Visual Arts
- Artworkers Alliance
- Arts Northern Rivers Visual Arts Network
