This is one of my earlier paintings that I painted around 1988.  It is a view of Piha (a very popular surfing destination on the West Coast of Auckland) from the hills to the South, and was painted from a photograph in a calendar.  Since then, I have taken all my own photos to paint.

I took the photo on which this painting is based at the location where the “Rivendell” sequence was shot in the filming of the Lord of the Rings movie.  (Located near the Kaitoke reservoir north of Upper Hutt.)  It has long been a favourite place of mine, as I used to spend quite a bit of time here when I was in my teens, and it not only has good memories for me, but also an ambience that for me is unmatched anywhere else.

Kapiti Island (Acrylic on textured card, 300mm x 150mm.)

Kapiti Island, as viewed from Paraparaumu Beach. This was done as an exercise in working quickly and expressively, and also as a small birthday gift.

Feeling Hills (Oil on textured paper, 300mm x 230mm.)

This was done as an expression of the feeling that I have often had after sundown when walking through an area of rolling hills.

Mavora Lakes (Oil on canvas board, 910mm x 610mm.)

Soon to be completed!

Mowhanau Beach (Oil on canvas board, 30mm x 22mm.)

This was painted on location.  It has been rare for me to paint directly from a subject, but just lately I have been doing this more often.  I like the result, which was achieved quite quickly, and I think with a bit more freedom of expression than I have previously achieved.

Mowhanau Dusk (Oil on canvas board, 460mm x 350mm)

This was painted wet-on-wet in a single session in December 2008.  It is based on a photo that I took around 5 years ago.  It shows Mowhanau beach shortly after sunset with the tide out.

Eternity (Oil on canvas board, 510mm x 410mm.)

Sometimes when I look into a big blue sky and watch the clouds drift past, I feel as though I can look into eternity.  I saw this row of trees on our way out to the beach near Waverley.  I took the photo on which I based this painting on the way back.

Lake Hawea (Pencil, ink pen and acrylic on acid-free 300 gsm paper, 297mm x 420mm.)

This was the view from our tent when we camped at Lake Hawea in December 2007.

From 6th to 12th January 2008 I was privileged to attend the Whanganui UCOL Summer School of the Arts to study painting using water colours with Ed Labadie.

For some years, I have been working at achieving a less photographic, more spontaneous style.  The image below is a very small fragment that I scanned from the middle of one of my paintings of Virginia Lake, Wanganui – one of my favourite places.  It was done in 2002.  I like this piece of the painting, because it shows what at first appears to be relatively loose brush marks, but as it is actually very small (only 15cm by 8.5cm) the brushwork is really quite tight!  (I had used one of my smallest brushes.)  It is this sort of brushwork, but using a larger brush on a larger scale that I would like to achieve more.  I think that I have had some success, and intend to continue on this path.