My Life Is Painting

I am lucky enough to spend my time living as an artist and painting in Australia. I am influenced by those iconic Australian colours of blue skies, red dusty soil and hot summer days at the beach.

For many years I lived in the remote West Australian Goldfields and that wonderful landscape still features in my work.

I have spent time in the Pilbara region of Western Australia living in the small town of Cossack.

Walking on the Mangrove flats I was captivated by the marks and patterns left in the sand by the outgoing tide.

These patterns are the inspiration for my abstract work in my paintings and ceramics.

My fantasy paintings of children and their dogs playing in the outstretched limbs of Boab trees come from my time in Broome.

And recently I have discovered the Bungle Bungle Range out from Kununurra.

Days spent walking through those unique sandstone towers has inspired me to paint and I can’t wait to get back there.

Unless I am away from my studio travelling, I work every day. I don’t wait for inspiration, I go to my easel and find it on a canvas, piece of paper or lump of clay.

I use many techniques and materials in my paintings including oil and acrylic paint, rust paint and charcoal, gold leaf and collage.

Some paintings happen fast, some take their time and are put aside to consider and come back to at a later time.

More recently I have had the opportunity to indulge my passion for ceramics working with stone-wear clay and firing in gas, soda and wood fired kilns. I love the way that my painting will inspire my ceramic — and how the wonderful, sometimes unexpected results in my ceramics inspire my paintings.

My art is my life!