Marine Life Portraits

Illustrations

I have always drawn and painted the natural world, I can’t remember a time when I didn’t have a pencil in my hand. My earliest marine life portraits were small pencil sketches, carried out on the back deck of the prawn trawler on which I was working, late at night when I should have been catching some sleep. My subjects the fascinating array of small crustaceans brought up in the nets.

After studying Zoology at UWA I began drawing accurate black and white scientific drawings at the WA Museum. These depictions of fishes for scientific publication had to be very accurate and clearly show all important details, the correct thickness, length and texture of every dorsal spine for example.

Illustrations

I have always drawn and painted the natural world, I can’t remember a time when I didn’t have a pencil in my hand. My earliest marine life portraits were small pencil sketches, carried out on the back deck of the prawn trawler on which I was working, late at night when I should have been catching some sleep. My subjects the fascinating array of small crustaceans brought up in the nets.

After studying Zoology at UWA I began drawing accurate black and white scientific drawings at the WA Museum. These depictions of fishes for scientific publication had to be very accurate and clearly show all important details, the correct thickness, length and texture of every dorsal spine for example.

The discipline this required was formative in all my future work.

The foundation of careful observation and understanding of the unique structure and characteristics of any animal which I portray has never left me. From this early black and white illustration following strict scientific conventions I developed a style of illustration both precise and more and more life-like. I wanted to capture the essence of my subjects for my audience, backed by my scientists understanding of form and function. I spent many years refining this, painting some 6000 illustrations, principally of fish and other marine life of the Indo-Pacific region. This was another discipline for me, to learn colour mixing and the techniques necessary to capture an endless multitude of different surfaces and textures.

My works wherever possible from measured specimen drawings, often done in the field. My paintings are created using acrylics on paper for the most part, occasionally on canvas, using the drawings and colour photos of the fresh specimens.

One of my principal goals is to encourage and promote in a wide audience an awareness of the beauty and diversity of marine life. It is an essential step in the development of a broader public appreciation of the need for its protection and preservation. If my portraits capture the imagination and instill a sense of wonder in the viewer then I have in some measure accomplished this goal.

My works wherever possible from measured specimen drawings, often done in the field. My paintings are created using acrylics on paper for the most part, occasionally on canvas, using the drawings and colour photos of the fresh specimens.

One of my principal goals is to encourage and promote in a wide audience an awareness of the beauty and diversity of marine life. It is an essential step in the development of a broader public appreciation of the need for its protection and preservation. If my portraits capture the imagination and instill a sense of wonder in the viewer then I have in some measure accomplished this goal.