My studio looks out over the houses opposite. They are terraced, made of red brick with slate roofs and beyond them are the tops of trees and the sky. Before I start painting I go out and over the little bridge at the end of the road and into the park. Walking, looking and thinking is the starting point for all my pictures. I live on the edge of town so it doesn't take me long to be out in the countryside. I absorb the atmosphere, the light and the mood each time I go out. I take photographs and sometimes make drawings but rely heavily on memory and impression. I think of myself as mainly a landscape painter but love the colour and shapes of plants so am often inspired by gardens and flowers too. My favourite medium is oil paint. I start with a prepared surface and apply a coloured wash. I loosely draw in the composition then build up layers of thin paint allowing the image to grow out of the forms and colour. I add thicker paint and detail as I go along. Although I start with an idea the paintings grow and change as I go along and always surprise me which makes painting exciting!