I'm a self-taught artist and I live locally in Cromwell, 55km from Queenstown. I was born in Oamaru and I grew up in Invercargill, in Southland. I've been painting since I was a teenager (now almost 40yrs old). I used to spend hours out in my sleep-out when I was young immersed in the smell of turpentine, mastering my new found obsession with the New Zealand landscape. My art teacher at Southland Boys' HIgh School wrote on my report that my "lack of attendance in the classroom was indicative of my tendency to be unreceptive of advice and direction in his work" - lol! Artists such as Graham Brinsley and Jonathon White, amongst other NZ artists, inspire me and my current style.

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I attended Otago University and completed a Bachelor of Arts in Art History and Graphic Design. After having children, my painting career slowed down a little and I worked a real job as a Vineyard Manager/Viticulturist for 14 years. After my parents had a house fire 2011 and quite a few paintings and early artworks were destroyed by fire and this spurred me into gear to create more pieces and try to be more career orientated at what I do.

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I'm constantly analyzing the New Zealand landscape looking for my next scene. I try to depict the harsh light and beauty of it in my own way and style. When I look back on past paintings to the scenes today, they look very different to what they look like presently and it saddens me the way civilisation has made more an on impact on the natural environment in recent years. Landscapes, then, not only as an artwork but also as an historical document of place and time.