On Grant

I have made several trips to San Francisco and I'm always struck by how familiar it is and yet how different each time I go back. While quintessentially American, it is somehow a country in of itself. This painting was inspired by the familiar; the silver tramlines that define the streets, the endless traffic and the soft evening light that I have tried to recapture in this work.

I am once again inspired by Edward Hopper and my affinity with Impressionism. The painting attempts to re-create the special San Francisco light on a summer evening.

I work predominantly in acrylic on canvas board as I appreciate both the flexibility and precision that it allows. This is particularly important in developing the vibrance and saturation that I look for in my choice of colour, subject matter and the effective of light upon it.

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I loved to draw and paint from a very early age. I was fascinated by the capability of artists to bring to life the world around them; to represent form, light and shade; to create three dimensions within two.

Simultaneously I was drawn to photography. From my earliest self-processed black and white prints to the sophistication of modern digital manipulation, I have always taken pictures.

In my professional life I established and ran successful creative businesses in London, Luxembourg, Malaga, Berlin and Sydney. I held senior roles in prominent design practices and advertising agencies, including the creative directorship of Europe's first online service.

More recently I taught design at universities and design schools in Sydney, Australia and Southern Spain with particular focus upon sustainable design thinking, human-centred design and developing successful design practice.

I began my career as a junior illustrator in London. It's therefore appropriate that with more time on my hands these days I should return to my first love.