My influences as an artist are eclectic. I have always has a great affinity with the Pre Raphaelite Painters. In many ways I am a romantic painter, but I also like the industrial energy of L.S. Lowry – not surprising given my early years in Scotland.
I also like the tension and space of Edward Hopper, a figurative painter who use of abstract shapes is something I empathize with.
Then there is the strange world of Stanley Spencer which certainly has had an influence. Then there’s Richard Dadd; I never tire of studying his Fairy Feller’s Master Stroke in Tate Britain.
And so it goes on: – Bosch, Breugel, Freidrich, John Martin and Ivan Lorraine Allbright.
Style
When I was at Goldsmith’s my painting style and drawing style was far apart. I have always been an idiosyncratic and meticulous draughtsman. My painting however used form, tone and shadow with less linear drawing visible.
From 2004 this has changed and my painting style, using gouache instead of oils has evolved directly from my drawing. I now meticulously set out the preparatory drawing on the area to be painted. I then use this as a strong framework for the painting.
As there was always a certainty and an assurance in my drawing this has now transferred to the painting. There is now continuity between the drawing and the finished work that was not there before. This style suits my obsessive personality. It leaves me free to use colour contrast instead of tonal ones.
The colours in my paintings are much stronger and more emotionally expressive. Now I use water based paint as against oil I can then make the transition to acrylic paint for my bigger canvases.
Themes
My work now mirrors the changes that have occurred in my lifetime. I look back to earlier work and build on it. Much of the work is nostalgic it also reflects how the balance of life is fragile.
However serious my work may look on the surface there is an underlying humour about all of it. There are many themes running through the work. These include railways, ruins, light, shadow, the industrial past, memories of childhood, landscapes, cityscapes, destruction, decay and rebirth.