I have been painting and drawing for most of my life, and my interest in realism began when I when I was a student, receiving a scholarship from The Emily Carr School of Art and Design to study in Florence Italy.
Although the components of realism provide structure for all my pieces, I hope to reveal the more abstract patterns I see contained in people and places. Whether it’s the beauty of natural design found in a slightly turned hand, or in a revealing unconscious gesture, the success of an image is based on comprehending and revealing those same patterns, and translating what I have learned about my subject matter.
The finer, more richly detailed works are small, often in the form of hand held icon-like images, depicting scenes in egg tempera/silverpoint and carefully glazed watercolours. The quiet formality and intricate structure of the smaller works represent my intellectual response. The larger, bolder works are executed in either oil/acrylic, where the delicate draftsmanship becomes more emphatic, and the colours more vividly defined, providing a direct and emotional way of expression.