An image from my promotional book 'The Smelly Mackerel.' It's a investigative book on the mackerel, only 8 pages long. Short and sweet. (or smelly...)

This is the beginning of my work for my Final Major Project. It will be based on animal anatomy. This is just some early work, researching into styles.

The lioness is attracted to males with darker manes apparently, and their shoulder muscle in unattached to the shoulder, allowing huge leg movement. Just some facts!

A commission I did for a couple through Flora Lou, the shop in Chobham where I sell my work. This was my first attempt at a homemade canvas, which was a success. It was a really enjoyable piece to work on.

When it comes to letters, I love making them look pretty. This is one I sent to a friend a while back.

These were originally going to be sold, but I actually like them too much. This is happening increasingly, and not particularly good for business!!

An owl. He looks a bit grumpy though. This one looks more like a defined gentlemen...

Some more work for my current project on the Spanish Riding School. It is taking the form of a narrative, and therefore a book at the moment. It tells of the evacuation of the prized stallions in 1945 to safety, and the events that happened for the horses around the end of the war. It's great to be able to tweak Uni projects to fit my favourite subjects!

Some images from my current Uni project. It's been quite hard to capture the ballet style movements of the stallions without the work being static, but I feel I have loosened up a bit now, and my work seems to be slightly more fluid.

Duke the Great Dane. I had a call from a lady who had seen my horse paintings in the Flora Lou window and wanted a similar portrait of her dog. I went to meet her and the dog last week, he is such a poppet. It's nice to do something a little different and I hope more work will come from it, but he really is just a small horse.

Some of the images that have resulted from the commission of Duke the Great Dane. I really love these images, maybe the possibility of a narrative coming along.

Three more horses that have gone into the shop this week. The brown horse is a bit of an experiment to see if it sells. I'm quite pleased with it, and it reminds me a bit of George Stubbs' work. The other two white ones are based on the horses of the Spanish Riding School.

I have recently been researching into the Spanish Riding School as a possibility for a future project, and had forgotten how incredible it is to watch. I've never seen it in real life but it's definitely on the 'to do' list. They are great fun to draw and and really defy gravity. This video is a great capture of some of the 'Airs Above the Ground' that the older horses perform.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AoPG5KZTay4&feature=related

This research into Stubbs has inspired me to study the horse myself, as I feel one cannot say that they 'love' a particular animal if they do not understand it's inner workings. It has been a real eye-opener, and I am pretty sure that my paintings of horses are improving. It is easier for me now to see how the hind leg would bend, and the muscles contract, making it easier for me to paint.

I am currently preparing my dissertation for which I am studying the anatomical works of George Stubbs, focusing on the horse. It's been so interesting reading about him and his art so far, and I'm confident that it will keep me engrossed for the next 8 months. 'Whistlejacket' is by far one of my most favourite paintings, and at just a shade under life-size, it is a beautiful capture of the chestnut stallion.

A few more portraits of horses. I enjoy trying to capture the personality of the horse in my work, which becomes much easier when I focus on the face.

Some more recent paintings of horses that I have sold.