Biography
Artist statement
After being solely a portrait painter for nearly twenty years, I am currently enjoying the resurgence in popularity of figurative art across the country. There is endless inspiration to be found in the human figure and no shortage of subject matter in our daily lives. I love to paint the nude; the fluidity of flesh in all its forms and am totally absorbed in the burlesque/cabaret scene. Beautifully posed bodies with stunning costumes and a little dose of eroticism! I continue to paint portraits as well, religiously entering all the portrait annual exhibitions I can, but now I have a greater variety of work to show, all still telling some story or other, and what that story is very much depends on what you, the viewer, sees.
I believe art should be available to all and am trying particularly to dispel the myth that real art, and a portrait in particular, is hugely expensive or that you have to sit in a draughty artist’s studio for months on end. I’d like to feel that there is a place for my paintings in any environment.
Influences
I have always been interested in all types of figurative work and portraiture in particular; my work is in a traditional vein, in that my paintings are realistic and always look like the subject! I am particularly inspired by the excellent drawing skills of artists such as Toulouse Lautrec, Degas and Picasso’s sketchbook work, as well as Klimt’s exquisite mix of portrait and pattern. Currently I admire the work of Alexandra Gardner, Jack Vettriano, and other contemporary artists who like to paint what they see around them with that little bit extra. I am fascinated by the human figure and particularly the face. I love the different visual effects of light on form.
Career path
I graduated from Edinburgh College of Art in 1992 with a BA (Hons) in Illustration and painting. I was exhibited in the 1993 BP Portrait Award at the NPG in London, and have been exhibiting and selling my work across the country since graduating. I currently work in a WASPS studio in Glasgow, where I thoroughly enjoy being in the company of other artists and find my creative juices flow very freely! My portraits are collected by a number of clients across the UK and earlier works are published in a number of Dorling Kindersley How to books. I am proud to have painted the portraits of such iconic figures as Tony Hart, Johnny Ball, as well as Tommy Sheridan and Jacki McNamara of Celtic Football Club.