Statement

I am an oil painter of Botanical Art and Portraiture, and a fellow of the Society of Botanical Artists. In my practice, I recentre and magnify the botanical subject in its ecosystem; where sunlight gives form, illuminates and conceals. I endeavour beyond the treatment of a plant as a specimen, to capture the fleeting sensory experience of being in nature, with an optimistic visual vocabulary of light, delicacy and radiance.

I am intrigued by the subtlety of sunlight playing over leaves and the juxtaposing negative shapes of their shadows, or the translucency of leaves and petals against a brilliant blue sky. I aspire to re-express the natural environment by privileging and giving voice to the commonplace and overlooked; at a time when appreciation of the natural world is not compatible with speed, automation, and digitalisation. As a vector of hope and optimism, the botanical subject takes on a new narrative role.

I seek to encapsulate the rhythm and metamorphosis that defines the natural world. Across varied subjects, I treat the themes of birth, regeneration and decay with botanical accuracy and detail. From waxy and glistening laurel leaves to the flowering of magnolias, decomposing hydrangea petals, and the aesthetic complexity of ‘common’ weeds. Through my daily country walks I find beauty in the unexpected, delicacy in decay, and stature in the commonplace.

In summary, I aim to nurture the relationship between the viewer and the natural environment by encouraging them to adopt my unique way of experiencing the world. To discover solace and calm in the close observation that comes from slowing down, seeing and feeling.