Time spent in nature delights and restores me and provides endless inspiration for my paintings. My current work reflects the sense of connection I feel with forests, streams and the subtle details and complexities of nature’s smaller elements. I enjoy returning over and over again to familiar untamed places to see them transformed by the conditions of light that change with the weather, time of day or season.
I am particularly captivated by the dynamic interplay of light with the flowing water of creeks and streams and how that interaction reveals unexpected shapes, forms and colours. The surface of these living waterways is never still; it can be an ever-shifting mirror of the sky and nearby foliage or a window to the world beneath the waves.
Each of my paintings begins with a detailed drawing on the canvas followed by a first layer of fluid acrylics to establish my composition. With each subsequent layer I enhance and adjust colours, refine shapes and add smaller features. Accents, highlights and final details complete the painting.
Although my paintings tend to stay true to the shapes and tones I see in nature, I love to play with colour so I will depart from realism to exaggerate, intensify or subdue hues to better translate not just what I see but also express the awe I feel for the wonders of the natural world.
