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Below is an Artist's Statement. Scroll down further for the Biography.

STATEMENT
Painting primarily on linen, I build up thin layers of oil paint and glazes,
developing depth and detail. The resulting paintings are smooth to the
touch and seem to glow with an inner light.


My love of large open spaces and lack of clutter is obvious in my work but

I am also fascinated by detail. These opposing elements are merged in my

paintings in a style which I call Photorealistic Minimalism*.

My paintings provide the viewer with a glimpse beyond the clutter of everyday

life, conjuring up notions of escape and peace, offering sanctuary from the

frenetic world outside.

The figures are alone but not lonely; searching but not anxious, anticipating

yet calm. They have an inner peace and strength and are at one with their

surroundings. The paintings reflect solitude, tranquillity and confidence,

giving every day scenes an unexpected and surreal feeling while keeping

them solidly within the real world.


BIOGRAPHY

I was born in Newry Co. Down Ireland and grew up on the edge of Dundalk, a small

market town in County Louth, just below the border and was educated at Dundalk

Grammar School. After graduating from Riversdale College in Liverpool I joined the

Transglobe Expedition, led by Sir Ranulph Fiennes. This three-year expedition

successfully achieved the first circumnavigation of the globe on land, sea and ice via

North and South poles along the Greenwich Meridian and changed his life forever.

During the expedition I was at sea, on an ice cap or in some remote location

for weeks or months on end. Spending large amounts of time alone, surrounded by

the staggering beauty of vast and often barren spaces had a profound affect and the

essence of this experience strongly influenced his painting. During the expedition

I sketched and worked in watercolour, illustrating places of interest in my diary.

For a number of years after the expedition I lived in Germany, painting

watercolours and oils, exhibiting and undertaking private commissions.
I also travelled extensively throughout Europe, spending time in Holland, Spain and

Portugal before finally settling in London in 1992. There my work took on a new

dimension, incorporating digital illustration.

In 2003 I returned to my most loved medium, oil on canvas and have been

exhibiting my paintings in the UK and Internationally since.


In 2007 & 2008 I was invited to exhibit at The Royal Society of Portrait Painters Annual
Exhibition in London.