I’m an artist living and working in Wadawarrung Country (Geelong, Victoria). I am married to Amie, who is also an artist, and we have 4 children, 2 boys and 2 girls.

I always loved drawing as a kid. When I was in high school, I gravitated towards visual art and photography. I considered going to art school when I finished but chose the ‘safe’ option of studying graphic design. I don’t regret that decision, but I’d love to go to art school one day too. I still work as a graphic designer part time. My journey into my career as an artist began when I decided to leave my full-time graphic design job to try my hand at freelancing (in design). I was drawn to being creative for creativity’s sake, rather than at the behest of a client, so I started painting. I worked towards my first solo exhibition, and it went quite well. I kept painting and now I cannot stop.

I am inspired by nature, memory and colour. Most of my paintings are sparked by an idea in my head, which can be as simple as a colour combination or an idea of a composition. I rarely paint from a source such as a photograph, as I find my perfectionism gets in the way and it usually becomes less expressive.

Often my canvases have started themselves before I’ve really thought about it, because I like to use up old paint from a painting on new blank canvases. Perhaps this comes from my Dutch ancestry, or just a personality trait of never wanting to waste anything (like I eat my children’s leftovers even if I’m full)! I love using layers, so I don’t mind if the colours I use at the start don’t work, because I will just paint over them. I love what can be achieved and revealed by accident. A big part of my process is choosing what to leave in and what to paint over.

Here is a picture of me that my ten year old drew:

Here is a picture of me at the opening of my 'Superabundance' exhibition at Jumbled in February 2022: