I graduated from Edinburgh College of Art in 1979 and worked as a wildlife illustrator for a few years before starting my own successful graphic design business in Edinburgh’s Royal Mile.
Relocation to a particularly beautiful part of west Perthshire many years later, coupled with an increase in the demand for illustration work and commissioned paintings, prompted thoughts of a shift to painting full time and I’m lucky enough now to be in a place, literally and metaphorically, where I can choose to make art for myself, from the heart.
Paintings
Since childhood my sketchbooks and diaries have been filled with drawings of imaginary lochs or lakes, surrounded by steep wooded hills and layers of mist. Little did I know I would eventually come to live there…
My immediate surroundings provide the starting point for most of my paintings. As well as attempting to hold a moment in time, I try to recount the ambience I’ve absorbed – whilst out walking, sitting by the loch or even just looking out of the window.
Illustrations
Inspired by anything I’m thinking about at the time: music, animals, objects… and inner impulses about situations and people.
Commissions
I’d be delighted to create a painting or illustration for you.
‘Painting Without Fear’ Workshops
I’m available for one, two or three-day workshops aimed purely at people who love the idea of painting without fear!