Artist Statement
I was born and raised in Bishop Auckland, County Durham, England, emigrated to the United States in 1976 and have been a full time printmaker for the last twenty five years.
Although I studied art in England, when I first came to this country, I was involved in soccer, in Florida. I later moved to Wisconsin and while on a fishing trip, made the serendipitous purchase of a book on English etchings at a wayside junk store. I was fascinated with this book and immediately enrolled in a printmaking course at the University of Wisconsin in River Falls.
Within two months, my wife and I quit our day jobs and "took it on the road". It became apparent that our chance of success was enhanced if I focused mainly on the creative aspect while Laura assisted in the studio and managed the business. I have since exhibited throughout the United States, received numerous awards, completed several corporate commissions and my images are widely collected.
My work is not merely a variation of the remembered visions of others, but is my own interpretation and impression of a particular location. I derive my subject matter mainly from the United Kingdom and my continuing travels in Europe. The topics, which are often architectural, may not be new or even topographically correct, but I strive to obtain a fresh concept and spontaneity in the pictorial aspect of my art.
My chosen medium in printmaking is the metal plate. I specialize in etching, drypoint, aquatint and mezzotint. I often use a combination of all of these techniques on the same plate. Due to the indirect nature of printmaking, I do many preliminary drawings concentrating on the design, tone and draughtsmanship of the proposed print. Only then do I begin to work on the plate itself.
My ultimate aim is the the print, and this concept is fully expressed only when the image is transferred from the plate onto paper. I print all of my own work as I feel that this enhances the uniqueness of each proof.
I unashamedly admit that the traditional masters of my medium, such as Rembrandt, Whistler and Martin Lewis, influence me.