I
was born in North Essex and lived in the picturesque village of Castle
Hedingham, well known to artists and writers, courtesy of its notable
pottery in the early years of the 20th century and then perhaps
more famously when Eric Ravilious lived there before WW2. He and
his friend Edward Bawden and their friends were well known in the
village which is still a much visited place. After school in Braintree
I trained as an artist as part of my teacher training at Abingdon
before returning to Essex where I was able to continue with my love
of ornithology, art and Colchester United FC - the reason for all
those blue and white stripes! I was taught printing techniques by Michael Moulder who was a silk screen specialist. I also learned critical studies from Mr. Bill Wilder, a fine art collector who was an expert on Hogarth and Palmer.
I taught in South Essex on the Thames
estuary for a while, occasionally making screenprints, if time allowed;
as well as playing some hugely enjoyable cricket for Benfleet CC,
the most remarkable of my 15 cricket clubs by miles and miles! In
the mid 80s a job move took me to Somerset, a greener county altogether,
courtesy of all the rain! After nearly 20 years in Primary Education, 13 as a headteacher, I changed tack to work for Somerset
Wildlife Trust as an Education Officer part time dovetailing this with being an artist. In late 2007 I moved to Alderney
just off the western side of the Cotentin in Normandy. My second book about little-known French wines is now available and can be ordered through this website.
