I sold my first painting in 1978, having just completed my Art 'A' level, and I've been quietly selling a wide range of work, predominately aviation and skyscape based, through my private circles ever since. I started working with oil paints when I was 13 and it's the medium I love the most; there is nothing quite like the creative anticipation of a large blank canvas to test your imaginative skills.

As a small boy I'd been fascinated by all things aeronautical and it was that constant interest that started me sketching aircraft before I moved onto expressing myself in colour. The aviation art market has developed tremendously since the late 1970's, largely thanks to the superb works of Robert Taylor, Gerald Coulson and their peers; the standards created by them set the bar for me and many other artists who are drawn to aviation themes. My own inspiration was also fired by the works of many of the old masters ranging from Caravaggio and Leonardo Da Vinci to Rubens and Turner. I don't really pretend to understand modern conceptual art.

After spending my childhood years looking up and dreaming, I took to the skies as a hanglider pilot in my early 20's and then moved onto my PPL in 1988. I now own and operate a Yak55m based at White Waltham in Berkshire and have been competing in aerobatic competitions since 1996; I also do a limited number of events as a display pilot. I've been fortunate to have flown and owned several interesting types over the years including a Fournier RF4D, Starduster Too and Pitts Special, of these the Yak55m has been a particular love with its presence, power and character. With 700hrs of "upside down" time in powerful aircraft I've been fortunate to have visited many of the sunlit platforms that I love to paint.