Statement

 

 

Drawing lies at the heart of my work. I enjoy the process, the directness of approach, the simplicity of means and the seemingly inexhaustible ability for a mark on a surface to convey an idea or feeling.

 

My work has focused increasingly on the West Coast of Scotland and especially the light which is constantly changing through the inconstant weather conditions. It draws me back again and again. I am driven by a desire to create a sense of being in that ancient landscape; cold air or rain on the skin, the purity of the air and the silence. I work ‘in situ’ whenever possible but more often because of the extremes of weather, I gather material to bring back to my studio in Oxford to make charcoal drawings.

 

Other work may be done in pencil, graphite, carbon or conte on a variety of papers and surfaces.  Although the subject matter varies, it is invariably from the natural world. The Covid 19 Lockdown has instigated a simple drawing project comprising a daily drawing of something collected while on my daily dog walk through the fields. The process of looking and drawing takes on an almost meditative quality. The object if noticed at all, might otherwise only have been glanced at, but here becomes an intense focus for observing and recording a minute part of the extraordinary world we live in.

 

My initial training and work was as a cellist, which I maintain in a reduced capacity. Perhaps the transient nature of musical performance is evident in my art work and could also explain why I work with a keen awareness of the performative aspect of making art.

 

Since gaining a BA (hons) in Fine Art in 2004, I have exhibited locally and nationally, undertaken business and ecclesiastical commissions, led community art projects in the UK and Tamil Nadu, India (2010). I also teach experimental drawing at the Oxford Summer School.