About the artist

A major inspiration for my work is Venice, full of colour, reflections and distinctive buildings. Torcello is my particular favourite island there with its stillness and decaying aesthetic. This sharply contrasts with the places I have lived in all my life, Yorkshire and Edinburgh, giving me two entirely different worlds to depict in my work.

Artists, too, who have influenced my work, during and since my time at Duncan of Jordanstone College of Art in Dundee in the late 60's and early 70's, are my teachers David McClure and Alberto Morrocco for the exuberance of their work, the American Abstract Expressionists for their radical call to me to always challenge and question, and to Picasso and Matisse for their bold sensuality.

A career in graphic design and advertising for 25 years has provided me with a vivid technique of telling a story through drawing and painting.

Recently, I have returned to printmaking after a second career of 20 years as an antiquarian book dealer. Printmakers such as Dürer, Warhol and the great Japanese artists of the Edo period, have all impacted on my awareness of the diverse ways marks can be made on paper.

All of these influences have enriched my art. I hope you enjoy my exhibition.