Australia
Over many years I have been back and forth to Australia. All of my trips there have been amazing, and many have been pure creative inspiration. In 1998 I visited the Porongurups on the southwest coast, a stunning small range of ancient granite rock outcrops and dense forrest. In 2008, I spent three weeks painting on the Murray River southwest of Perth. Most of the work from Australia was exhibited at the Brackendale Art Gallery in Brackendale, British Columbia in 2008. This is some of the work in a continuum of influence from this part of the world.
Paradise Valley
Paradise Valley, British Columbia has been a significant influence on my abstract work. I spent seven years there living on the banks of the Cheakamus River which joins the Squamish River running into Howe Sound. It was a period of time living in deep nature, daily exposure to extraordinary wildlife, which partly centred around four salmon runs a year. It continues to be a deep creative reservoir. The pieces in this collection were exhibited at the Brackendale Art Gallery, Brackendale, British Columbia in 2008.
Vancouver & Gulf Islands
I spent over thirty years living in British Columbia, Canada. It is a formidably powerful place, with a powerfully unique heritage of ancient nature and an indigenous culture of extraordinary creativity and spirit. In 1996 I lived on Salt Spring Island, a dream experience come true as I had been visiting the gulf islands since the early 1980's. The abstract works in this collection were created for an exhibition called Silence in 2000. The pieces are influenced by the archeology of ancient middens that can be found in the Gulf Islands......remnants of indigenous peoples camp sites during hunting and fishing seasons. This collection was exhibited again in 2005 and 2006 at the Squamish Public Library, Squamish, BC in a solo and then group show respectively, and again in a group show in 2008 at Cityscape Gallery in North Vancouver, BC.
