My paintings are a result of a process of mark and response. I feel my way gradually through the painting using mark making techniques which are both gestural and intuitive. The process is slow partly because of the drying rates but ultimately this allows the necessary thinking time in order to make critical decisions. Collage is a relatively new venture which is different in process but similar in so far as it’s still mark and response. I use vintage papers, as well as making my own. I like the quality of the surfaces and subtlety of colours. I am drawn to surface and texture in particular, and colour. The heart of my work is a consistent preoccupation with abstract principles – line, tone, colour, rhythm, pattern and the like. The work begets new work. Edges of shapes, clarity of line, movement and balance all contribute. It could be described as a visual assonance or dissonance – indeed this imbalance is absolutely necessary to achieve a finished work.

I trained at Winchester School of Art in the 1980s – a very painterly place back then. Paint remains one of my central preoccupations; its physicality. I have lived in St Ives with it’s rich artistic traditions and it’s a place that still informs my practice.

 I won the Pallant House Open competition and my work is held in the Isle of Wight, NHS Trust and Hampshire County collections