Artist Statement:
I have had a passion for painting and drawing all my life. These days, I will generally paint and draw anything that will be still enough for long enough to let me! I prefer to paint directly (ie with the actual subject matter in front of me, rather than a photo) either in the studio or out in the elements ‘en plein air’.
To me, a well executed drawing or painting (mine or anyone else’s) can convey a truth more eloquently, an emotion or a feeling of human experience more truthfully than any other form of expression. I can still remember the first time I saw a Leonardo drawing in a text book – I was literally transfixed at how the world could be viewed in a different way other than how I had been brought up. To me, the Leonardo drawings were able to get directly to the heart of the matter, and disregard what he could not be bothered to ‘see’.
Since my decision to become a full time artist some twenty something years ago, I have tirelessly pursued a goal to be able to just do it better. This has inevitable involved me going through a number of stages and phases, all of which have helped me acquire more experience and skills as I moved forward.
It has long been touted that in order for an artist to develop, he/she needs to travel and experience different environments, so the journey is a physical one as well, and my wife (Isix) and I have lived in Australia, England, Wales, The Netherlands , Hong Kong and France, taking in many other countries along the way, including Spain, Portugal, Italy, Scotland, Germany, Croatia, Russia, Sweden, Crete, Fiji, New Caledonia.
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Education:
1997 - 1999 Diploma, Julian Ashton Art School, Sydney
2000 -2003 Bachelor of Fine Arts (Major Painting and Drawing) University of NSW.
2004 Invited to do an Honours year, which has been deferred
Awards & Distinctions:
2021 Awarded First prize for oil painting at the Echallot'Arts festival
2020, 2018, 2015 & 2014 Chosen for exhibition in Salon d’Automne, Paris, France
2019 Awarded painting prize at the Montmarte à Clisson Painting Festival, France
2019 Featured by Saatchi Art's 'New Masters of 2019 printed catalogue delivered to thousands of collectors in the USA
2018 Featured by Saatchi Art in a collection
2017 Awarded painting prize at the Magne International Painting Festival, France
2014 Awarded prize at the Art in the Open festival, Ireland
Professional/Teaching Experience:
2003 Tutor for Undergrad students at the College of Fine arts, University of NSW
2006 Art Teacher, Wandsworth School, London
2015 till present Teaching regular classes in France from my studio
Exhibitions:
2019 – Montmarte à Clisson Painting Festival, France
2017 – Magne International Painting Festival, France
2016, 2014, 2013, 2012, 2019 – Noordwijk Schilderfest, Netherlands
2015 – Solo Exhibition in Groupama, Niort, France
2015 – Exhibition in Galerie Beauté du Matin Calme, Paris & Séoul
2014 – Art in the Open festival, Ireland (awarded prize)
2014 – Solo Exhibition in Château Sainte-Catherine, France
2014 – Exhibition in Art De La Brèche, France
2013 – Solo Exhibition in Royal Gallery Amsterdam, Netherlands
2011 – Solo Exhibition, Artest Sydney, Australia
2010 – Jean David Atelier d’art, Cordes sur Ciel, France
2009 – Solo Exhibition in KunstKerk, Amsterdam
2008 – Affordable Art Show at Marcello’s Gallerie HAAGS, Netherlands
2008 – Paint, Light & Colour – solo exhibition at The Gallery Upstairs, Netherlands
2006 – Annual Exhibition Royal Society of Oil Painters, Mall Galleries London
2006 – Battersea Contemporary Art Fair, London
2006 – Affordable Art Fair, London
2005 – “Love” Exhibition at the West-Eleven, London
2004 – Solo Exhibition at The Watch House, Balmain Sydney
2003 & 2002 – Threshold at Manly Arts Festival, Sydney
1999 – Julian Ashton Art School Annual Exhibition, Australia
Artistic Influences:
The largest influences in my career have been Degas, Picasso, Fred Williams, Richard Schmid (American, recently departed), Mary Cassatt and many others.
Artist Tags:
impressionist, abstract, colour, nude, france, australia
