Willoughby Fine Art Gallery

Thoughts on Painting

“My first goal with any painting is to establish a satisfying composition. Without good composition, there is no point going further. I use a simple palette of the best quality paints and I take chances. Some of my most successful paintings have gone very wrong before I managed to pull them into shape. I create form and space with my brush, moving over and through surfaces of my landscape, still life and figurative paintings. In this way, I interpret and construct the vista before me onto my canvas. I am a hit or miss painter; the works that I show are the hits, the others I set aside. It is important to me that my work looks as though it was easy to create, not labored or over worked. I admire broadly conceived and painted work. I use small brushes only where they are needed. Too much niggling spoils the charm of a painting…better to start over.

On Sculpture

The purpose of my sculpture is to express feelings and aesthetic concepts that are difficult or impossible to express as effectively by any other means. I endeavor to create pieces that convey strength, beauty and emotion. I don’t illustrate. While my work might appear to be purely figurative, it contains a great deal of abstract content as well. In fact, it is my life long interest in abstract composition and the way the human mind interprets a shape that distinguishes my work from the majority of figurative artists. I value solidity, continuity of line and rhythm. I see fascinating forms everywhere. I’m influenced by the shape of automobiles, lobsters, building, ants, trees waves, mechanical devices, mountains and, of course, people. I study anatomy and machinery to create figures that appear to articulate and move like living, breathing creatures. I also observe body language, facial expressions, and the movements of ball players, dancers and other athletes.

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