Having formerly valued the importance of direct observation drawing to support my painting, I now prefer to allow memory and imagination to fuel a more creative response.
My current painting practice is therefore studio based using experiences and recollections from various locations with little regard to actual topographical landscape or specific constituents.
Paintings are therefore abstract but not to the extent that they cannot in some way be contextualized.
Although the general landscape will always provide a fertile starting point, I frequently return to the decay and detritus of a limestone quarry in my area.
I'm also fascinated by the ebb and flow of the sea in harbours and estuaries; the channels of water, lines and textures exposed then concealed by the changing tide.
Occasionally I respond to my home environment.
Relying on my memory bank of impressions my paintings begin with a conscious selection of colour and initial gesture or mark. From that point onwards I work instinctively. Each painting continues on its complex journey; asserting, veiling and obliterating using mainly acrylic paint combined with a variety of media. A painting might undergo quite radical incursions if I'm tinkering with description and those initial starting points may well become lost en route.
Paintings are often energised with expressive, lively swoops of colour. Other times more restraint and control is prioritised but my principal concern is always the juxtaposition of colours and the interplay between the additional formal elements of line, shape and texture.
Each painting’s journey is usually complex, undergoing dramatic changes sometimes taking weeks to resolve.