Born on the island of Cyprus to Scottish parents, I spent my childhood in the wild Western Isles of Scotland so New Zealand's Te Ika A Maui is the largest island where I have made my home.
Growing up in Breaker Bay was amazing for a child obsessed with creatures of all kinds from birds to bugs to fish so I picked up a pencil and began drawing them. Dreaming of being an artist I graduated from Wellington School of Design in 1992. After many years as an illustrator I turned my focus to being an artist. My intricately detailed wildlife art is influenced by my time as a scientific illustrator at Te Papa, and my own traditional Celtic visual culture.
Like my Hebridean homeland the elements of our wild Wellington coastlines are of merging ocean and horizon...the motion and rhythms of wind, sea and hills, and of waves rolling over pebbles and sand under ever-changing light: these inspire my atmospheric, textural paintings. Whether there or in the Botanic Gardens where I walk its bush trails every day, I am inspired by being immersed in wild places amongst our wildlife.
I create because it makes me feel valuable, and in doing it for others it produces something of value for them. I put my heart and soul into making a piece of art that lives and breathes and talks to people; that decorates their lives in a way that makes them happier and, I hope, inspires them.
While continuing my work as an illustrator and artist I began teaching both children and adults how to draw in 2007 (see Drawing Classes for more details).
