I hope you can almost smell the lavender and feel the heat; experience the mystery of an olive grove and the intimate crumbling beauty of the Provencal villages. Working with fine brushes I can paint the detail that drew me to a particular scene and often I combine this with a thick impasto fore ground.

I build up the fine detail in these tiny paintings over many weeks using very fine brushes: the paint, especially on the foreground detail, really stands out giving extra depth and impact to each work.
These highly collectable paintings, all beautifully framed, shine with a jewel-like brilliance.

The beauty of the Provencal landscape is captured perfectly by this new technique which combines the delicacy and detail of watercolour with the rich tones of oil paint.
Each painting is beautifully framed with the artwork floated on top of white acid free mountboard to show the rough edges of the thick paper that it is painted on.

To paint watercolours here is far more of a challenge than in a cooler climate. The paint often dries before the brush has touched the paper and, when painting outside, the thirsty insects are constantly landing on the painting to drink the wet paint.

My oil paintings of flowers show a definate Van Gogh influence, I have painted them in a thick impasto & they almost leap out of the canvas. I really enjoy painting them & I do hope this shows.

Spring in Provence is a riot of colour with fields of wildflowers and poppies; soon after this the lavender comes into bloom, and also the sunflowers. Everywhere is scented and humming with insects. I hope I have captured some of the beauty and atmosphere of this in my paintings.

To find so many birds in this area, especially so many rare and unusual ones,was an unexpected delight. Here are a few that appeared in our garden.

Here is a small selection of  my studies in watercolour of  some the many beautiful wildflowers I discover whilst out walking, I hope in the future to be able to produce a book using some of these illustrations.
In this fragile world, I do think it is important to be aware of the delicate flowers & insects that can so easily be ignored & destroyed.
Should you wish to commission me to paint any particular flower and/or insect I would be pleased to help.

I have always had a keen love and interest in butterflies and insects. They are one of the wonders of nature and so important in the eco-system and a pointer to the health of our planet. I usually paint these as true to life as possible as there is no need to embellish something that is already so perfect. Some I have painted as studies, others just as a celebration to their beauty to share with others who are also appreciative of nature's small jewels.
 I have a new website dedicated to my insect paintings www.butterflypaintings.net

When we first went to live in Provence we had our dearly loved Cavalier King Charles Spaniel 'Jamie'with us. When we lost him a family of wild cats came to feed on the titbits I threw out & produced four kittens who wormed their way into our lives & cheered us up & made us laugh again. I have written & illustrated a little book about them "Kitty's Tale" which I am hoping to get published.
 Here are a few pictures from it.

These Limited Edition Prints are for sale either framed or in a mount ready for your choice of framing or loose for posting in a tube.