Artist's Statement

I have always painted and built things. I always knew what I wanted to do and fortunately was always encouraged to pursue Art.

My art school studies in London included Painting and Sculpting from the Model in the Classical Tradition together with Modernist approaches to invention and the medium as an expressive vehicle. I began my first abstract work in 1961 and continue to work abstractly because I find it exciting to pursue ideas beyond those I know. The experience of my past and present paintings, intuition and logic guide me in the hypothesis of the next painting.

The pursuit of originality, quality and the expressive strength in art comes by the invention, choice and creative use of form (a visual language). All work, despite its expressive, social or psychological value must, I feel, be resolved visually if it is to constitute art. This resolution being obtained by the visual unification of the form itself. This is, I believe, the essence of artistic activity, yet it does not in any way prescribe what the art is to be or how the resolution of form can be obtained. Rather by continued experiencing, we are shown what is indeed whole, unified and what is not.

Personal taste will vary, style and social value may differ but the visual relationships, the life and unity or lack of it, in a work of art, are a good indication of a works quality. Despite ones personal likes or dislikes, and given the opportunity to experience work over time, our taste often changes and we can grow to appreciate that which is perhaps at first offputting. Looked at historically, invention and originality can be seen to go against accepted and existing tendencies but by comparisons we can give support to our judgments, and with time, our senses grow.

Originality in art often requires substantial reevaluation by the viewer of what is good, but if quality, unity and expressive strength have been maintained, time will show its true value.