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Art. Maybe it's in the blood, a case of genetics, or maybe it's a calling. It could just be a bit of both. According to one of my mother's childhood school certificates she was good at art and as for my father he studied architecture back in Europe. But as a kid I did draw a lot, cartoons & stuff. When I was young my step father took us out bush a lot and he loved to paint too. We'd go camping & walking, enjoying the view. So somewhere in there my love for art & landscape was nurtured. As a teen I completed the Art Certificate Course at Liverpool Technical College and somehow got hooked on this idea of pursuing painting as a career & way of life. Travel, that's in the mix as well. I've spent time overseas, living in Germany (land of my ancestors) and traveling around Europe. My fondest memories are of the museums & galleries. Painting gives me a good excuse to hit the road and to get out and clear away the cobwebs. The pastels get thrown in along with my swag and off I'll go to get inspired. Roads are a feature in some of my works. Folks feel there's something metaphorical in that and I suppose there is, but I leave that up to the viewer. The Blue Mountains west of Sydney, that's where I make my home, Not for any grand artistic vision, it's just where I've happened to land. But it's good country with some fine folk. The other country I feel called to is the land around Alice Springs; the Macdonnell Ranges. And the Kimberley is on my list of favourites too. Painting for me is also a spiritual thing. I find out a lot about myself....not all of it good. Philosophical ideas, spiritual practices and books I've read help me creatively too. Friends inspire me as well. But when that's all said & done, it's when I'm out in the landscape that any thoughts of why and from where and what for just drops away. Painting...it's what I do. |