About
I am an artist based in Oxfordshire.
I was born in Stratford upon Avon and benefitted from a childhood filled with opportunity for travel, exploration and learning. I was actively turned on to an appreciation of the natural world, history, our cultural heritage and the environment.
I studied engineering at Leeds University and Penn State University and worked for more than three decades in the construction industry. My career in construction was based in Oxfordshire, where I settled with my family.
Having retired from the consultancy business of which I was a joint owner, I spent time teaching, undertaking voluntary work for the RSPB, learning new skills in picture framing, travelling and living abroad (Cyprus) and developing my portfolio of artwork and photographs.
I am endlessly inspired by the work of many of the Old Masters with which we are all familiar: Van Gogh, Rembrandt, Caravaggio, Raphael and the Impressionists. I also love the decadent brilliance of Egon Schiele, who inspires my life drawing, and I appreciate the work of Victorian travellers such as Ruskin and Lear, whose work influences the sort of urban sketching and depictions of the built environment that I habitually draw and paint.
My background continues to shape my work, which contains a strong sense of structure, precision, and perspective. In addition, my love for photography influences the way I observe and frame scenes, often drawing from wide-angle viewpoints to capture a sense of scale and immersion. These combined influences are evident in my illustrations, which are generally undertaken in watercolour and which balance careful architectural detail with expressive line work and colour, offering a distinctive and thoughtful view of the urban environment. Colour also plays an important role in my work, which I use intuitively to convey atmosphere, mood, and a sense of place rather than strict realism.
I exhibit my work annually in May during Artweeks in Oxfordshire, and in I have also exhibited at recent local exhibitions in Faringdon and Islip.
I am a member of the Oxford Art Society and I exhibited at Oxford Art Society Open Exhibitions in 2022 and 2023.
I am involved in Eynsham Arts Group as Honorary Secretary and Treasurer, and I regularly contribute in their exhibitions.
I run a fortnightly Life Drawing Class at Mill Street Arts, Eynsham. If you would like to join us and take part then do please contact me for further details.
The portrait opposite was painted by my friend Angus Reid in Cyprus, summer 2018.
