Our great land is awash with wow moments near and far. All or any of earth, sky and sea create an immensely varied and often surprising repertoire wherein epherema such as seasonal conditions, time of day, light, and perspective, conduct the tune at any one performance. All in all it us a must explore our amazing country. I feel fortunate to have done so including many extremely remote, sparsely populated places. Every journey, sometimes revisiting, fires the love of outback and coast and kindles the never dormant urge to paint. Biography and some thoughts on painting are on the ABOUT page.
I hope you enjoy my site and explore the many collections. Paintings are grouped by subject and works are relatively recent covering the last two decades of my now aalarmingly long painting career. All are acrylic on linen, and prices are shown in AUD including gst.
PLEASE CLICK ON OVAL BUTTONS TO ACCESS EACH COLLECTION. THE SITE IS EVOLVING SO DO GET IN TOUCH IF THERE ARE ANY PROBLEMS.
These new works are born from years journeying around our fair land, at or beside the wheel, on and off road. Vast skies hover over even more vast landscapes - whether on land or at sea sky is one big constant illuminating, shadowing, signalling day's dawn and dusk, and weather to come. Land, sea and sky conspire to present the big picture.
Big Sky West Macs 46 x 136 cm. $1400
We love it and flock there. The moment when the elemental trio of land, sea and sky collaborate in amazing vistas perfect for all sorts of recreation, or just admiration, and quite often awe at the power of all three. Oceans react quickly to the slightest change in wind and faraway geological and climatic events keeping us on our toes whether on in or by it - ever watchful for it to turn into an invasive life threatening monster. Staunch landforms stand guardian but occasionally lose the battle.
Living in a great agricultural country, prolonged drought pulls at the heartstrings not only of rural folk. The cruel wait can seem endless. Clouds deliver said fix, and, in themselves, are fascinating - ephemeral forms, there but untouchable and hovering! They bring hope and a fresh start as down comes the magic sustaining liquid bringing new life to rivers, dams, bush and paddocks, flora and fauna and us.
Phenomenal volumes of water travel around the earth via mesmerising big drops - from slow sometimes intermittent trickles to thunderous walls of water shrouded in mist, waterfalls are oases when chanced upon as they transport water from high to low. Our Kimberly region particularly the unusual Horizontal Falls, northern NSW's Apsley Falls and much loved Refuge Bay Falls in Kuring-gai National Park all are very special places - and there are many more on our continent. Add gravity and the flow jumps rocks and all in its way to radiate cool, and harbour cleverly adapted plants and moss which cling on for dear life aside a very fast moving highway.
There is an awful lot of it but never dismiss our remote outback thinking there is nothing there. However termed - wilderness, never never country, back of beyond, each moment is uniquely inspiring. Spinifex, prickly intriguing plants spread far and wide across arid zones, never in humid climates, harbouring creatures who benefit dense thatch shade, and night condensation funneling down fronds. Against desert soils they can appear a soft pale blue grey. Young green clumps age to straw yellow, then grey and eventually black. A glowing swale of golden spinifex in bloom especially at dusk or dawn is a sight to behold. Shapes range from balls to distinctive rings. Fetching accompaniments include termite mounds built from the surrounding soil and ant saliva. These start tiny and communities keep building over decades to form monumental totem like sculptures.
Extraordinarily eery, Antarctica is the only offshore place I have been inspired to paint. The pristine waters and ice, slow moving burgs, interrupted by occasional crashing as glaciers fall into the ocean are amazing - not to mention the armies of penguins, seals, and the odd whale! We are privileged to visit and hope that future generations will have the opportunity.
