Outback Scrub mixed media 100 x 100 2015 :250
In 2010 i joined a trip coordinated by the Larapinta Creative Arts camp to travel out to the Finke Valley in Central Australia .It was my first trip to the Red Centre . On my first night in Alice Springs i dreamt of 2 hearts meeting. I knew i was in the right place at the right time . Two days later i was picked up by the organisers Debra and Charlie and driven 3 hours into the Australian outback.
I slept in a swag under the stars each night. The days were spent drawing and painting in the desert. I was lost for words and became speechless on arrival to our site .I felt compelled to lie down on the earth to be embraced by the mother landscape.I wept as I knew the land was speaking to me .I could hear language in the elements of this landscape.
Sharkey Mo Gouache & ink 2007 SOLD
When we lived in Coledale NSW we had a dog called Elmo . He was a red staffy who ran incessantly along the beach biting the waves. He spun in circles yelping trying to catch his tail..Mo joined my trips to our local beach ,Sharkeys, where id setup my shade shelter each day and paint and draw the seascapes, landscapes and trees.I carried gouaches,charcoal, ink and paper with me, a thermos of tea and fruit . I wore my swimmers and often would sleep inside the shelter when it was too hot to paint .Mo would sleep too until we were refreshed enough to be creative again .
Kids oil on paper 800 x 600 2012 :600
Grass St was where i grew up in Wellington NZ. In a sprawling 100 year old farm house overlooking Oriental Bay . I spent my first 16 years there with my family .My mother was a painter,my father an entrepenure ,my 4 brothers made music ,films, climbed trees with me and searched the town belt for hidden treasures. My half brother and half sisters lived their lives in Wellington and frequently spent time at Grass st too . I grew to know and love them all .The house was on a half acre of land filled with pine trees terraced lawns and hidden pathways.into the surrounding bush. We had german shepard dogs and several cats as pets .Our living room was generous in size and had large french windows that looked out onto the harbour below.
I grew up watching my mother draw. It was part of my life education watching Helenwith her circle of artist friends hold life drawing sessions in nour living room. I began in 1985 while studying at City Art Institute in Sydney
.I was completing my BA degree in Fine Arts.After 2 years ,i travelled back to London and worked for 1 year soley in the life drawing studio at Byam Shaw School of Arts in Archway. This was the most concentrated period of time i spent with a life model .On my return to Sydney in 1989 i continued life drawing on a weekly basis at Brandling st in Alexandria.
As of 2023 i have returned to monthly life drawing sessions at the SERVO Bar in Port Kembla NSW .
Portraits have been a constant in my life . Particularly self portraits or of my close friends and family.
Paintings and drawings that ive made outside of the bodies of work. Transitory peices .
A Night on the Town acrylic and ink on paper : SOLD