I was born in 1954 in Woolwich, South East London, and grew up not far from there, in Plumstead, the birthplace of Matchless motorcycles. I think I was born a transport enthusiast. As long as I can remember, I’ve had an interest in road transport of all types, as well as railways. One of my earliest childhood memories is of not settling down to sleep until I'd looked out of the bedroom window above my parents’ greengrocers’ shop to watch some London buses passing!
I’m self-taught and can remember drawing and painting pictures of cars and trains as a child. My childhood ambition was to become a car designer, so I also spent time sketching my weird and wonderful ideas. At school I chose to study Technical/Engineering Drawing, instead of Art, as it was more appropriate to my aspirations. Although I didn’t follow that career path, I’ve continued painting pictures of transport subjects throughout my adult life.
When I was a child, in the late 1950’s and early 1960’s, there were still a lot of older cars in everyday use on our roads, many of them dating to the pre-WWII era. “Foreign” cars such as Mercedes-Benzes, Peugeots, Renaults and Citroens were a rare sight, and Japanese cars had hardly been heard of, apart from appearing in the pages of “The Observer’s Book of Automobiles”. I think that’s why British classic cars, especially of the 1930’s to the 1960’s still evoke memories and interest in me today. Whilst the definition of a classic car is always hotly debated, for me, they include the everyday cars we took for granted. Whilst there’s no disputing the beauty and performance of exotic cars such as Ferraris, Jaguar E-Types, Aston Martins, etc., I believe the cars used as workhorses, which were unceremoniously scrapped when they’d worn out, or rusted beyond economical repair, are now rarer and truer symbols of our motoring heritage.
I enjoy painting a variety of pictures, some of which are scenes (many are compositions) and others are studies of single, or families of, vehicles on plain backgrounds. These include pictures of commercial vehicles, buses and motorcycles, as well as cars. Some of my pictures also include other modes of transport. All my works are in oils. For a few years in the early 2000’s I sold originals and prints, greetings cards and other products with my images on, trading under the name of “Classic Transport Portraits”. Items were sold from a trade stand at classic car shows, autojumbles and selected craft fairs, as well as through my website. I also carried out many commissioned works of customers’ own vehicles. I’ve been a member of The Guild of Motoring Artists since 2000, and some of my pictures have been exhibited, through the Guild, at the Alex Reade Motorsport gallery, and at the London Classic Motor Show at Alexandra Palace. Nowadays I mostly paint as a hobby for my own enjoyment, although I’ll occasionally paint a picture for a customer or friend if the subject inspires me!
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