Ultra Violet Budgie & Monstera Deliciosa

As you can start to gather from my style of painting, I'm really into painting lines. The high contrast black striped markings of the budgerigar make them a real joy to paint. I've painted this guy up nice and large in a beautiful violet colour which compliments the deep blue foliage. This painting has a more loose style to it, and features a few splotches and paint splats where the brushstrokes have been expressive and decisive.

I’m a colour junkie and I love working in limited and interesting colour combinations. For this gouache painting I have mixed the paint into a more opaque consistency to give a flat screen print feel to the piece. Colour, shape and line are the heroes, and the white line work gives my work it’s unique Australian flavour. I use premium quality light fast gouache paints and professional watercolour paper. I recommend professional framing using archival matt board and glass to protect your investment for many years to come.

My artwork is sold unframed unless stated in the description. Purchase of this artwork does not include reproduction rights. Artwork cannot be copied or used without the artist’s prior permission.

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I’ve been making art for most of my life, though the path here hasn’t been completely straightforward. What was meant to be a one-year trip from the UK to Sydney in 1994 somehow turned into a permanent move, and Australia has felt like home ever since.
A lot of my work begins outdoors; walking, noticing plants growing through fences, strange colour combinations in nature, or bringing home flowers and cuttings to paint in the studio. Painting has always been a way for me to slow down and pay attention. It’s where I feel most myself.
Before returning to painting full-time in 2015, I worked across surface pattern design, printmaking and graphic design, and those influences still shape the way I paint today; through colour, rhythm, line and composition. I’m also deeply inspired by the simplicity and spontaneity of Chinese and Japanese ink painting, calligraphy and woodblock prints, though my work has gradually evolved into something much looser and more contemporary over time.
Since returning to full-time practice, my work has been exhibited in solo and group shows across Australia and selected as a finalist in prizes including the Calleen Art Award, Lethbridge Prize, Bluethumb Art Prize and the National Contemporary Watercolour Prize. My paintings and prints have also been licensed onto homewares and collected internationally.
I still feel genuinely grateful that I get to spend my days painting, and I hope that sense of joy, calm and curiosity finds its way into the work itself.