STATEMENT
From a child, I have always loved the natural world around me; hedgerow, river banks,woods and the creatures that inhabited them. I took them for granted, thinking they would always be there. Yet from around the age of 15, I watched in dismay as, one by one, the places that I loved, were torn up to be made into superstore complexes, road systems, new housing etc. The Suffolk Sandlings which surrounded my home town of Ipswich were eventually reduced by 75%!
My work has always been based upon the landscape; I firmly believe that it is far more than simply its' physical appearance, that it contains the memories of past millennia and clues not only to our history and folklore but also to our heritage and this is what I have attempted to communicate, whilst at the heart of what I create, has always been the concern that we are using up the worlds’ finite natural resources and through our lifestyles and 'progress', we are damaging it.
Now, with the news that was made public on Monday 8th October, 2018, that scientists had issued a global warning that unless we change our way of life, industry, waste pollution etc., we have 12 years before experiencing drastic changes in the climate, it has become even more important to convey, not only my love of the natural world, but to attempt to encourage people to take this warning seriously.