My work is a study in transparency and reflected light, colour and the movement of fluid shapes. Inspiration has come from subjects such as glass, ice, water and reflective surfaces. I paint in watercolour, a medium which shares the qualities of my subjects, lending itself to the expression of the light and shadow, soft shapes, crisp edges and transparent colour which define my work.

Although my paintings are realism based, I have never been interested in traditional representation, often approaching my subject from a close-up perspective. As a result, the subject is only partially defined and stretches beyond the limits of the composition. In both my work with glass objects and my paintings of ice I have explored the effects of light and transparency, the fluid shapes of my subjects and the abstract forms found within them. This approach can be described as a study of the concept of abstraction within representation. The subject may be recognized but the focus is on form, movement and colour.

Glass Inspired Gallery:

The paintings in this gallery reflect my ongoing interest in the transparency of glass, it's clean, clear hard edges and the effect of light shining through it as well as my fascination with the soft, fluid, abstracted forms found within the glass. Glass has been the major theme in my work since the late 1990's. In early work I represented the whole piece or, in many cases, juxtaposed pieces of glass in order to study transparency, light and reflected colour. The places where the glass objects intersected or overlapped their curved edges drew me into an exploration of fluid movement. This evolution in my work continued toward a study of the abstract forms found within the glass. Without points of reference the success of these paintings relies on the use of colour, structure and, as always in my work, movement. The progression from representation toward abstraction has challenged me both technically and in terms of artistic expression. I continue to work with both the solid and the fluid aspects of glass. The clean, clear, hard edged work responds to my enjoyment of drawing and of the transparency of watercolour and the softer, more abstract work draws from a deeper response to what the eye perceives.

Water and Ice Gallery:

The sight of icebergs, seen off the coast of Newfoundland, is the inspiration for the paintings in this group. On trips to Newfoundland in 2000 and 2001 (and, with luck, again this year) I was able to observe a number of icebergs from small boats. The scale, colour and surface textures of these natural sculptures tell the tale of their travels from the glaciers of Greenland. The transparencies of ice and water, along with the fantastic sculpted contours of the ice provided exciting and challenging elements for expression in watercolour. As with my paintings of glass objects my work with ice continues to evolve away from representation toward an exploration of the abstract forms found within the ice.

The ARCHIVE Galleries show works which have been sold from each series.