I was born and brought up in Largs, a small seaside town on the West Coast of Scotland.
I found my passion to draw at an early age and have worked on many different styles of artwork over the years.
After graduating in Technical Illustration & Design for Print from Glasgow College of Building & Printing, I started work 22 years ago as an illustrator, 4 years later became a 2D Graphic Artist for computer based training, then worked for 14 years as a 3D Modeller, I now work from home as a full-time Artist.
I paint using oils and after trying various subjects I have now settled on two main themes, my Highland Cow series and my Auldmen in the Pub series, both I find are very popular. Where I can, I like to try and inject humour into my work, as it gives me a challenge to try and make the viewer smile and also it helps tell the story that I am trying to compose.
My ideas can come from many sources, like sitting in a cafe or pub just people watching, or a scene from a film but the majority of ideas can develop when I’m working on another painting when I am in the creative zone.
I paint immediately, covering the canvas with a colour that will dominate the painting and then use a rag to finely wipe away paint creating the sketch to work from, this is why I generally don’t bother with preparatory sketches, if I have the idea in my head I like to start painting at once and resolve everything on the canvas, this can change as the composition evolves which makes it more exciting about how the painting is going to turn out.
At present I exhibit my work at
Lemond Gallery in Bearsden (www.lemondgallery.com)
MacGregor Fine Art in Glasgow (http://www.macgregorfineart.co.uk)
The Castle Gallery in Rothesay (http://www.thecastlegallery.com/)
The Stirling Gallery in Stirling (http://www.stirlingart.com/)
Also I exhibit at the Macmillan Cancer Support Art Show and the Lord Provost of Glasgow's Fundraising Burns Supper with 50% of the sales going to their charity.
