Moving to Donoughmore and the beautiful rolling hills on the outskirts of Ballyragget in Co. Kilkenny has certainly been like opening a window to new world for me as an artist. Having spent most of my life living and working in Kilkenny City inspired a lot of my work, initially capturing the beautiful historical buildings that adorn the medieval city. My love for pen and ink was the perfect medium for me to express my feeling for these buildings.

Cycling has always been my mode of transport and taking inspiration from the countryside was a natural progression, stopping when I liked to sketch, paint and gather material for future projects. Traveling across the backroads in Brittany France, Tuscany in Italy and north-eastern Spain in recent years have allowed me to extend my love for cycling and painting with a brighter and changing palette.

Which brings me back to Donoughmore - its such a beautiful place to live and, having the privilege of our own studio and most recently extending that into our own gallery, has been a very exciting part of my life. My partner and I, mosaicist and painter Colette O’Brien share this studio. Waking up in the morning and walking a few steps into your own studio to work is indeed a beautiful feeling for an artist.

Sean Keane of the Kilkenny People wrote something about me a few years ago and said that it is “hard to pigeon-hole (me) as an artist” and, I suppose, that is kind of true. I find inspiration for my work in all aspects of life. I have the beauty of the countryside in it’s sweeping landscapes, beautiful sunrises and sunsets, hedgerows and farming life which feature in my paintings. In ways, I would describe Donoughmore as a kind of Shangri’la.

It is a rare and beautiful feeling to share life and work in the same studio with another artist. We are opposites in some areas of work we create together. But recently we have embarked on a joint venture together experimenting with my love for hand-built pottery and Colette’s expertise with mosaic. We look forward to presenting this work to the public in the near future.

My love for the impressionist’s movement has always been a major influence on me in my painting and the work of the American artists Andrew Whyth has always intrigued me with it’s sense of mystery. The sculpture of Modigliani and Rodan and the beautiful drawings by Picasso and David Hockney are another source of inspiration. Closer to home, the work of Tim Goulding and David Gale continue to fascinate me as an artist.