Full of trivia

Watercolour and enamel on paper N/A

My head is always full of stuff - many times in the middle of the night I wish it weren't so. I have all these memories from my past, and very, very important bits of information that I've just been exposed to -sometimes I think my head must be getting full. The thing is, it's not like you can have a clean-out and get rid of all the useless stuff to make room for all the good new stuff. I guess, I'll just keep shoving it all in while I still can.

Light touch

This is the first in a new series of paintings. I completed it just after I returned from my trip to Oslo and London. When I returned it reminded me of the incredible number and variety of people I came in contact with on the journey. Wedged into a seat on a plane full of people for what feels like days on end and crammed into the underground at peak time you do touch many lives, some literally and other just by your presence. I like to leave a positive trail on my journeys - as light a touch as possible.

Light touch, Oil on canvas 56 x 56cm N/A 

The Plum Tree

Watercolour and acrylic on paper.

Growing up as a child we had a plumb tree on the front border of our property. I particularly liked to climb this tree and gather the plums while they were still fresh and tart. If you waited long enough for them to ripen fully (according to my taste preferences) they lost their edge.

The truth is most of the homes in those days had fruit trees on their property, and if you didn’t have any, someone in the street did - they were always fair game for plundering if you were adventurous enough.

This painting is about looking forward to finding your own unique flavours and not being afraid to embrace them along the way. 

The Storm

Watercolour and enamel on paper.

I recently sold this painting to a Wellington couple who appreciate their city for good and bad.

Wellington has weather, dramatic weather, and no more so than on the south coast. I have driven around there in a southerly storm and watched the waves crash in on the rocks and send a crescendo of foamy water tens of metres into the air. As often is the case, the weather following one of these storms is picture perfect – the air is clear and the sky impossibly blue.

We all have dramatic moments in life that are often followed by calm and it would seem that to appreciate one you need the other. Not all drama is welcomed but I do love a good storm.

Journeys

My latest work revolves around journeys. Each painting is a lifeline of the journeys we all take. I prepare the backgrounds in advance and then contemplate the final stage, sometime for several weeks before completing the work.

We often divide up our lives into sections; before our twenty's, before marrage, the OE experience, jobs we may have had etc. But in actual fact life isn't like that, it's one continuous line, for good or for bad we take our stories with us and they form who we are and how we will act in the future. I want people to view these paintings and think of their own journey's and of the impact that they have on others around them - including the environment. To see your journey as a whole would influence you in your decisions, perhaps it's good that we can't, but I'd like the viewer to consider just that when they look at my works.