Work in Progress

Work in progress. Yellow and white take sooooo long to dry which means the layers of varnish I need to put on this painting can't go on for at least two weeks!!!

Nearly there,

Thie work is still in progress.

This is a little look at my current work up on the easle.

In an up and coming project I'm working on some paintings I've been meaning to paint for years now.

The above drawing is an advanced idea of mine to paint the moment Prometheus is shackled by Vulcon, a story relating to my Olympic project. Although an immortal Prometheus is a champion of mankind who tricks Zeus then steels fire from the gods on mount Olympus to give back to man. Zeus doom's Prometheus to an eternal punishment of having his liver daily eaten by a great eagle only to grow a new liver by night.

Vulcon (the cripple blacksmith child of Zeus and Juno) is charged with shackling Prometheus to a rock a moment that really intrigues me about this Greek creation theory.

This is a portrait of two boys commissioned by their parents Fiona and Peter. They bid for the Commission at a Tenovus auction donating generously.

In celebration of Helen Jenkins becoming Triathlon world champion (2011) for the second time Helen's running club (Bridgend AC) and the Welsh Triathlon organisation presented Helen with a painting I had done of her on their behalf. Helen was also presented with a massive trophy from the British triathlon association.

It was a wonderful evening spent with some of the cream of Welsh athletics and former Olympians and Phil Cope (Following the flame co-ordinarier) took this wonderful photo of Helen and me with the painting.

Latest unfinished work

Just a little look at some newer work

Just a little look at some newer work.

Some great photos of the event in Swansea from Phil Cope.

Now that I have the 'Following the flame' opening out the way I am spending a little more time on my project about UK troops in Afghanistan.

This is a subject that is still very relevant and people around Britain need to keep on remembering what our boys are going through in Afghanistan and we also need to keep thinking about the Afghan conflict as a hole.

This new work is highly effected by some of my contemporary influences such as Conor Harrington and Ian Francis incorporating words and many layers of images to express my view. This hopefully will be made richer when I bring in the views, experience and images of my cousin Rory who has been serving in the air force in Afghanistan.

Look forward to more new works on this subject.

Sunday saw the opening of the 'Following the Flame' exhibition in Swansea's Brangwyn hall that follows the history of the Olympic and Paralympic Games through the words and experiences of Welsh athletes.

The opening was attended by many former Welsh Olympic athletes and gold medallist including Lynn 'the leap' Davies. I had three works displayed there including a painting of Lynn, Non Evans (Rugby, Judo, Weight lifter and wrestler) and Irene Steere Wale's fist woman gold medallist at the Olympics.

I had a fantastic time meeting every one and catching up with Non and the exhibition organiser Phil Cope but the high light was meeting Irene Steere's daughter and family. Seeing the eyes of a woman that I had painted in the image of Venues over two months in her great grand children was simply amazing not to mention getting her eye colour right. The show also displays Irene's swimming costume and again I was astonished to find that I had guessed it's colour perfectly.

The show is free and the venue is wonderful, well worth the visit.

Ever since my mothers death at the age of 2001 at the age of 48 I have tried to do a little every year to raise money for either the hospice (where she spent her last days) or one of the cancer charities because I know the difference these Charity organisations make.

I have always prefer to donate my skills rather than money because I know that my small income will never make a difference while the money raised with a run, swim or my painting skills will be substantially more than I can give alone. This point was proved when my portrait commission sold for £2000 during the auction held by the TENOVUS cancer charity held in the SWALEC Stadium in Cardiff's Sofia Gardens international cricket grounds.

The dinner was £175 a place and was attended by Rory Bremner and a gaggle of renowned football stars. I was delighted (not to mention shocked) to be treated with the same worm hospitality as Rory Bremner being seated with the charities host for the evening and one of the charities directors.

Rory Bremner was conducting the auction along with BBC's sports commentator Steven Mohamed. It was a fantastically entertaining auction with my donation reaching the second highest bid and with Rory and Steve both flattering me hugely with their praise of my artwork.

I'd like to thank the TENOVUS charity for giving me this opportunity to give a little towards such a Worthy cores. Please go on their web site and find out a little more about TENOVUS; http://www.tenovus.com/about-us.aspx

On the 31st of December the columnist Karen Price made her annual prediction in the Welsh national newspaper the "Western Mail" profiling "talent to watch out for during the next 12 months".

It came as a massive surprise to find amongst the list of bright twenty-somethings a profile of little old me. With a picture my father had sent Karen from his Iphone and a very brief interview at 9am the day the paper went to press I was placed right in the middle of the page in the centre fold of the paper as Karen Price's only selected artist along side Musician's, Opera stars and Actors.

For over a year now I have been based in my lovely studio above the Pieminister pie shop in the old pie factory which has got the most amazing north light. But unfortunately because of Pieminister's ever growing business I have to move out.

You could say that Pieminister have sponsored me during my time there and the help and support (not to mention discount pie) they have given me has helped me develop my work enormously.

So now I must find a new studio space which is proving more difficult than I thought. It would seem that with most studio's you must apply and then await a judgement indefinitely. I have applied multiple times (over the last two years) to a few studio's without ever having any sort of reply. In-fact, so far, I have only reserved one reply out of around ten applications!

I see a studio as my work place and so being without one is very unsettling and of course there is work to be getting on with so, if any one reading this has any idea's about what I can do or if any one knows of any studio space's please let me know.

I'm looking for around 150 to 200 square foot with good day light, a sink and preferably other artist.

I was very privileged to get into the RWA's open autumn exhibition this year. The exhibition is the most popular of the Royal West Academy shows and it includes paintings, drawings, printmaking, photography, sculpture and architecture works.

My work has gone up in the main hall along side works by renowned and accomplished artist like Graham Crowley and my old tutor from Howard Gardens, Mike Crowther. I was particularly flattered to find that my painting was the only work to have neither a painting above or below it where it hangs on it's own little space of wall.

The private view was the busiest the RWA has ever seen and it was wonderful to see so many people coming to enjoy and take in all the art that is on offer.

When I decided to paint "In Arduis Fidelis" I was not driven in any way by aesthetics or a desire to paint a saleable image, in-fact I set out to paint a picture aimed at captivating it's audience, connecting with the viewer to let them into a situation they would never wish to be in and make them think about the effects that the Afghan conflict has on UK troops. These are ordinary boys and girls that work long hard hours in a life changing job on long tours that expose them to thing most British people will never see or know and the effects are profound.

Another darker side to the painting is the realisation that your only looking at the soldiers side of a larger situation. In modern conflict soldiers only make up 10% of the overall casualties, 90% are civilian!

I so very proud to have my work hanging in such a wonderful gallery but even more proud that despite the paintings uncomfortable content the RWA still chose it and hung it and my painting will now be seen by hundreds hopefully touching the hearts of many.

This year I was excepted as one of thirty artist asked to produce work about the 2012 Olympic as part of Seb Coe's Cultural Olympiad project. The idea is to produce work that inspires young people to make the best of themselves and to produce a lasting Olympic legacy.

I started with a painting of the inspirational David Weir, four time winner of the London Marathon and paralympic gold medallist. My painting was chosen to take centre stage at an exhibition all about Dave in London's Sutton Library.

I have been fortunate enough to have had one of my paintings chosen for the RWA's illustrious autumn exhibition.

I had entered my two big paintings about the effects of war and I.E.D.s on common soldiers in Afghanistan. I was very keen to get these paintings seen while the subjects are still relevant and also because I believe that Afghanistan's has slowly been creeping out of the national Psyche in recent months and I hope that this large Baroque-Esq painting will help to raise awareness of the sacrifices made every day by our armed forces.

The RWA chose my painting In Arduis Fidelis. In Arduis Fidelis (Faithful in Adversity) is the motto of the RAMC (Royal army medical corp) and I felt it to be a fitting title for a painting that is meant to describe the brotherhood of British soldiers in the face of such dreadful adversity not just in death but more so in the life changing effects born from the exposure of young men and women to the hardships of battle and the loss of limb.

The show starts on the Sunday the 24th of October and it will be running until the 12th of December.

http://www.rwa.org.uk/