Beyond the Wine-Dark Sea Painting

I once scaled the walls of an abandoned section of the Cliveden estate, England. Having recently acquired a decent 35mm camera I was keen to document that hidden world beyond the high security fences. The place had fallen into an advanced state of disrepair in its eleven year abandonment and a definite feeling of other-worldliness pervaded the entire place. I guess I wasn’t as stealthy as I’d have liked for I was soon caught by a security guard - who, instead of reporting me to the police - kindly permitted me another hour of exploration in that strange and silent place where nature had triumphed in claiming back what mankind had put there.   It was this singular event that has sustained itself in my memory as though it were the purest of chords struck. Half a lifetime on and with visits to cities such as Venice, and Valletta - with their myriad layers of deep history on view - this obsession with mysterious atmospheres, weathered texture and the more subtle beauty of nature has only grown further still.  The compositions in many of my works are typically led by instinct and feeling. The end results rarely adhering to any initial preconception I may have had, with each piece seeming as though to develop a will of its own during the process. A process that brings with it a curious state in which I am transformed from humble applier of paint to enthralled voyeur.