“Using landscape and seascape as a starting point, I explore movement and energy alongside notions of time and metamorphosis within the natural and physical world. Colour and qualities of light have a leading role to play in my paintings and are the expression of the transient moments I notice from observing the land and sea and sky. I am interested in the connections I have to particular places and the effect the landscape, sky and sea have on me.

I often work outside, either at the coast or in the landscape, on sheets of loose paper, using pastels so as to capture the movement and colour simultaneously.

I see this as information gathering and a reminder of the experience when I return to my studio work.

In my studio, I work on larger canvases or paper and use elements from the whole body of drawings made outside as starting points. From here I create paintings, and drawings in pastel, combining the visual recordings made, fired by my passion for colour mixing and making marks.

Creating drama and awe are important to me and I play with contrasts and the physicality of gestural mark making to achieve this.

During the studio painting process, I begin to recognise metaphorical thoughts that the images I am creating give rise to. These are often reflected in the titles I give them.

I sometimes work with acrylics, as under-layers, and oils as the main body of a painting to create depth and sheen. I paint with both mediums separately as well.

My work is an expression of the joy I am filled with as I experience the wonder of the natural world, taking C.S Lewis’s description of joy as a “sharp, wonderful stab of longing”.