1.      At what age did you begin creating art?

Day dot! I started drawing as soon as I could hold a pencil. I amused myself drawing for hours as a kid. I drew everything I saw in detail and when I got bored I’d find another object or toy and drew that.

2.      Why do you make art?

I make art because it’s truly my greatest passion and I totally feel compelled to express it with the world. I truly love colour and I want the world to see and feel that.

3.      Who do you make it for?

I’m a colourist so I make art for people who love colour.

4.      Do you plan out a piece or do you wing it?

Everything I paint has a plan and purpose. I make extensive sketches in journals and annotate everything…even if I’m not using that particular sketch. I use everything eventually. I’m very visual so I’m forever taking photos, cutting magazines, collecting things, writing down things, sketching on the run. These are my thoughts and they eventually become my paintings! 

5.      Do you have heroes? If so, who, if not why not?

Yes I do. They are forever changing and I love certain heroes for certain things at certain times. Currently, Mark Rothko is my hero. He was as much a colourist as he was an abstract expressionist. Another all time hero of mine is Ed Ruscha. He was the master incorporator of words and phrases into his pop paintings. His textual, flat paintings cleverly linked Pop Art and the Beat Generation. Another hero of mine is…we could be here forever!!!!

6.      How do you decide when a piece of work is finished?

Only once the battle has ended. There is great solitude being a painter. Our greatest achievements are often experienced on our own…but before such jubilation first comes struggle. There is a dialogue between you and the canvas….a pushing and pulling effect if you like. The painter must be in control because the canvas often wants to go a different way. You must dictate the painting. You battle and fight to tighten or tweak certain areas and this takes energy...great energy to get it right. Painting is 100% total adrenalin. The planning, drafting and composing, the execution and struggle, the tightening and tweaking, the battle and fight, the solitude and roller coaster ride and eventually the joy and triumph. What a rush, you’ve won only to begin all over again.   

7.      Do you have your own cure for artists block?

I’m very fortunate that I’m always showing and that I’m always traveling with my works…so if I’m showing in a certain city or country in my down time, I’m out exploring. I sketch, draw and take photos. I collect things. This assists with any blockages because I’m always able to recall those experiences. As an artist, being constantly creatively active is the greatest cure for any blockage.

8.      Do you think having an art education is important in order to be successful?

Yes and no. Often collectors, curators, dealers and art writers like   to know the history of an artist, where he or she has studied. They like to know the artist’s academic and artistic lineage if you like. On the flip side, the work should stand-alone…it should speak volumes unassisted.