People often ask me what my “painting style” is. To this day I have never come up with a good answer. Sometimes I say “off the wall”, or “stylized figures”, always “colourful”, sometimes “with a touch of humour”.
When I graduated from the Ontario College of Art in 1989, I was painting quite realistically, with oils and always using reference, which can sometimes be restricting. It was in the next few years that I realized the beauty and the freedom of imagination. I started to stylize my figures and their surroundings, often making up stories to go with them. It helped that I’d majored in Editorial Illustration at school. I also found the beauty of acrylic paints which really work for my style of painting.
I’m frequently asked where I get my ideas. I do a lot of sketching, playing with ideas, taking my ideas a step or two or more away from reality. Because you can do that with creativity. You can do anything you want. And what can be more wonderful than that?