THE FOLKESTONE WHITE HORSE

I dreamed up this idea to mark the new millennium.

The emblem of Kent is a white horse, but Kent had no hill figure. Although the horse is the main motif of existing English hill figures, most are found in central and west England, so it seemed appropriate to create one in Kent. I evolved my “Beasts“ series of images into a giant “Hill Figure“ form.

After much ado, it was completed in 2003. The local Shepway Borough Council now use an adapted version of the image as their logo. I now even get parking tickets with my image on them. For more information visit www.whitehorsefolkestone.co.uk To read an interview about it, click here

BHAGAVAD GITA

In 2010 I made a series of black and white drawings for the great Hindu book to illustrate this new translation and commentary by Ranchor Prime, published by the Fitzrovia Press www.fitzroviapress.co.uk. Our collaboration has now extended to a successful book launch at the Folkestone Book Festival. To listen to excerts of the text log on to Youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O7Q7O9hZqPQ

I felt especially honoured to be asked to do this as I am not a Hindu. Ranchor guided me through to make these radically different images, a break from the usual cheesy sweet style which usually adorn these sacred texts.

DAVE DAVIES – THE KINKS

Also in 2010, I completed cover artwork for a DVD and CD for Dave Davies of the Kinks, containing the life story of his own Mystical Journey, together with some magical new music (see www.davedavies.com).

DR SYN

Following on from the dark themes of my ‘Revelations’ series of paintings shown at the Atlantis bookshop gallery in October 2009, I was asked to paint an image of Dr Syn, the fictional ‘Smuggler King’ of Romney Marsh created by Russell Thorndike, whose novels are set for a long overdue reprint.

Spike Milligan portraits

Shelagh, Spike’s wife, asked me to do a portrait of Spike. I ended up with a series of 6. He was not an easy subject, only managing to “sit“ for 15 minutes at a time, constantly moving and talking, falling asleep or just wandering off.

The paintings show a face older than the image of the more sprightly man that most people would recognise.

Murals

Painting murals has been a periodic but regular occupation for me. Often involving highly dangerous acrobatic activity, in terrible conditions with impossible deadlines.

I worked with Patrick Procktor as his assistant on the Venetian mural in Langhams Brasserie in 1980, which still survives albeit looking a bit brown now, as Patrick insisted on using too much turps in the oil. Ever since, I have used acrylics which survives much better…

I have just completed a triangular work high up in the apex of a building on the theme of the Revelation of St John. An extraordinary subject and a wonderful vehicle for the imagination.

The other mural images shown here are on the “BEASTS“ theme, one in England and one near Lascaux, South West France.

PAINTINGS

I have been lucky in France…

I painted a watercolour of a friend’s chateau in Burgundy as a thank you for my stay. From that, commissions to paint chateaux kept coming in, and, over the years, I feel I must have painted nearly all of them! Along the way, I painted the landscape, large-scale murals and oil paintings to order. I also greatly enjoyed producing a handful of wine labels.