Waitangi Waves
30 cm x 60 cm acrylic on canvas panel
$550
This painting was inspired by a swim I took during Waitangi weekend. For me, these colours and this view is typical of a beautiful summer's day on the Kapiti Coast.
Morning Sailing
30 cm x 45 cm acrylic on canvas panel
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This is based on a photo I took of the Bluebridge ferry setting out from Wellington harbour one morning.
Dawn Swim
30 cm x 45 cm acrylic on canvas
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This was a commission for someone whose husband liked to swim in Oriental Bay, Wellington. It is based on a photograph she took. I loved the bright sunlight and how it reflected off the light-coloured decking in the foreground,
The Bay
20 x 40 cm acrylic on stretched canvas
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I was lucky enough to spend 25 years living in Days Bay so it is a very special place for me filled with great memories. This is the view looking northwest if you are standing on the wharf.
Porthole
10 x 15 cm acrylic on paper
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The second-hand frame came first here, and the painting was done to fit inside. This is the smallest painting I have done. I wanted the effect to be like you are looking out of a porthole at the ocean whizzing past.
Summer Shallows
40 x 75 cm acrylic on canvas (in tray frame)
$1200
For me this is such a typical kind of Kapiti scene and one I absolutely love to paint. This one is mounted within a floating frame and it has a light, summery feel about it.
Seascape II
30 cm x 45 cm acrylic on canvas panel
$695 (in 'floating' tray frame)
Seascape II is inspired by my most favourite painter, Joaquin Sorolla. I just love his painting "Seascape" from 1904, you can see it here. If you haven't heard of Sorolla before, Google image his work, it totally blows me away!
Afternoon Walk
60 cm x 30 cm acrylic on stretched canvas
$350
The sun is low and the shadow is long in this painting, as it's the middle of winter. I love those sunny and bright but chilly winter days at the beach.
Nine-Mile Beach
75 cm x 120 cm acrylic on canvas
$695
Nine-mile Beach is a desolate but beautiful stretch of coastline just north of Greymouth of New Zealand's West Coast.
Evening Light
A4-size canvas panel (framed)
$595
This is a typical Kapiti evening view with bright light shining through heavy cloud over the island. In this painting I wanted to capture the moodiness of the scene along with the brilliant sparkles of light on the waves.
Hokitika Beach
75 cm x 90 cm (acrylic on stretched canvas)
$795
This is a panoramic view of Hokitika's main beach - I love the wild shoreline and the deep colour of the ocean down on New Zealand's west coast.
South End Series
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$275
A4-size, framed
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$275
A4-size, framed
$275
A4-size, framed
Rapahoe Beach
90 cm x 135 cm acrylic on (3) canvas panels
$1750 (framed as 'floating' in a tray frame)
We stayed at the awesome Rapahoe Beach during our West Coast road trip. The beach is covered in beautiful stones, including (if you are very lucky) greenstone. Yoshi and I dug and found tiny flecks of gold too! While he was busy digging, I took a few photos of the waves. This painting is based on one of those photos.
Emerald Island
45 cm x 91 cm acrylic on canvas panel
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This was a commission for a local business - the brief was for the painting to have a calming feeling, with some green in the wave and Kapiti Island behind.
Sparkle
30 cm x 45 cm acrylic on canvas panel
$695 (in 'floating' tray frame)
This was painted from a photo I took on a trip to the South Island's west coast - we struck such sunny, bright weather down there and the water was brilliant and sparkly.
Rockpools
30 cm x 45 cm acrylic on canvas panel
$180
This painting was inspired by the rockpools down at Pukerua Bay - I love the way a rockpool is its own calm little world even though the sea just beyond it is rough and wild.
Pukerua Bay
30 cm x 45 cm acrylic on canvas panel
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This is the view from Pukerua Bay looking out towards Kapiti Island.
Fizzing Foam
50 cm x 100 cm acrylic on stretched canvas
$550
With this one I wanted to paint the fizzing foam and catch the feeling of movement as it comes in and gets sucked back out. Up close, this painting has a lot of texture and it often catches the light to look quite alive.
After Dark
60 cm x 30 cm acrylic on stretched canvas
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My first moonlit Kapiti scene. One of my dreams is to spend a night on Kapiti Island - apparently it comes alive with the sounds of kiwi!
Summer Days
90 cm x 45 cm acrylic on stretched canvas
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I grew up n Days Bay, so I was really happy to be commissioned to paint this piece. I have so many fond memories of jumping off the wharf, and catching the ferry to and fro across the harbour to Wellington City.
Looking South
100 cm x 50 cm acrylic on stretched canvas
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This is the scene from Paraparaumu Beach, looking south towards Pukerua Bay and Mana Island in the distance. Mana was settled by Māori from the 14th century. In the early 1820s, the Ngati Toa iwi, led by Te Rauparaha established bases on Mana. The name of the Island is an abbreviation of the Maori name Te Mana o Kupe, which means "The Mana of Kupe".
Silver Linings
120 cm x 60 cm acrylic on stretched canvas
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This is a painting of the late afternoon sun, looking from Paekakariki beach out towards Kapiti Island. The day was cold and stormy but the sun had just broken through and everything was suddenly gleaming. Junko and I were driving on the coast road towards home, and we stopped to take some photos of the sea. I loved how silver the water looked, and the strange light in the sky.
Father and Son
30 cm x 20 cm acrylic on canvas board
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This was a commission for a lovely customer who asked for a painting of her husband and son, and their two dogs. This was my first time to paint dogs (well, shapes of dogs) and I was very relieved that she recognised them as her own!
Kaz's Wave
100 cm x 50 cm acrylic on stretched canvas
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With this wave I wanted to capture a bit of brilliant green green in breaking wave and then popped in a little spray to add something dynamic. This painting was purchased for a physiotherapy studio in Wellington. I hope it makes patients feel relaxed!
Siblings' Stroll
60 cm x 60 cm acrylic on stretched canvas
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This was a commission for someone who wanted to recreate an old photographic memory of their children. I loved the light in the photo and the fact the children's faces weren't visible in detail (because I struggle with faces!). The sea turned out much greener, but I hope I managed to capture the feeling and atmosphere well enough.
Isolation
60 cm x 30 cm acrylic on stretched canvas
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This was a photo I took of Junko on the beach, somehow the water in the painting ended up looking more inviting (although Junko ended up looking more like a child)
Dazzled
90 cm x 60 cm acrylic on stretched canvas
$750
This is based on a photograph I took of Junko standing in the water on a late summer's afternoon.
Te Awanga
70 cm x 30 cm acrylic on stretched canvas
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This was a commission for a couple from Hawkes Bay. Te Awanga is a small beachside town and is near Cape Kidnappers, which has a renowned colony of the Australasian gannet.
Morning Walk
60 cm x 35 cm acrylic on stretched canvas
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I took a photo of a little golden bit of sunlight on a wave while out walking. This is my painted version. I love to walk on Paraparaumu beach early mornings on the weekends.
Gumboots
20cm x 28cm acrylic on canvas board
Unavailable
This was a little competition for people to send in a photo of a seascape with the chance of winning a painted version. I liked this picture so much, it reminded me of my local beach and I liked how the little boy was just gazing out to sea.
Tranquility
70 cm x 40 cm acrylic on stretched canvas
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This painting was inspired by a Waitangi weekend swim down at the local beach. I love the green waves and the way the sunlight glints off them - this was what I wanted to capture with Tranquility.
Te Waiāriki
("An Essence of His Grace")
90 cm x 30 cm acrylic on stretched canvas
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This is from a photo I took while swimming at Raumati Beach. The word "raumati" is from te reo Māori and it translates to "summer" in English. This is what summer looks like to me.
I put this on Facebook and asked if anyone had a name, and there were dozens of suggestions, all of which were awesome. There was only one name I couldn't understand, which was Te Waiāriki. I looked it up online but couldn't find a literal translation in English. So I messaged the person who made the suggestion and I got this thoughtful answer:
Hi, Māori words don't have a literal meaning as such, it depends on the context you use the word. So here's a brief summary why I think this piece portrays Te Waiāriki:
- Wai could simply mean water or an essence of something.
- Ariki means either chiefly/godly/or even a title given to someone with high regard.
So, my interpretation of Te Waiāriki in a simple translation is, "An essence of his grace."
FYI: Te Waiāriki is my daughter's name. And this is such a beautiful piece.
I was really touched by this suggestion and explanation, and especially that it was also the name of her baby daughter!
Lynne's Wave
28cm x 20cm acrylic on canvas board
Unavailable
This painting was done as a gift for a friend to take to Japan and give to her 1-year old granddaughter, who loves the beach. This will be the first painting of mine to have a home in Japan.
Dusky Shore
28cm x 20cm acrylic on canvas board
$300 (framed)
This is my version of a Joaquin Sorolla painting, which I love. Sorolla was a Spanish painter in the late 19th-century. He excelled in the painting of portraits and landscapes. According to Wikipedia "His most typical works are characterized by a dexterous representation of the people and landscape under the bright sunlight of Spain and sunlit water."
Check out his paintings if you can (or here's a few below) - the way he paints reflected light is incredible!
Seatoun Southerly
150 cm x 100 cm, acrylic on stretched canvas
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This was a commission for someone who wanted a Seatoun seascape, showing land in the background. The hills are the Eastern Hills, between Eastbourne and the Pencarrow Lighthouse. The rock in the foreground is Steeple Rock. The time of day is early evening, and the swell is coming in from the harbour heads.
Morning Light
150 cm x 100 cm acrylic on stretched canvas
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This was a commission for an awesome local business that needed something to go on the wall in their waiting area. Their branding is teal and bright green, and they have Kapiti Island as the main feature in their logo. So this was painted to fit within their space and with their look and feel.
Sylvie's Wave
100 cm x 76 cm acrylic on stretched canvas
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This was a commission for a customer who wanted the view from Waikanae Beach, using a soft bluey-grey palette. I love watching the foamy waves overlap each other and making patterns when I walk on the beach.
Green Breaker
100 cm x 50 cm, acrylic on stretched canvas
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This wave came about quite unexpectedly and was different from my usual blues and sunny skies. It is looking out towards Kapiti from the rock pools on the coast near Pukerua Bay.
Calm Morning Breaker
76 cm x 38 cm, acrylic on stretched canvas
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This was another commission for someone to take overseas as a gift. I love those calm mornings where it's hard to tell where the water stops and the sky starts. This wave has quite a peaceful and calming feeling, it was nice to paint.
Eastbourne Beach
120 cm x 120 cm, acrylic on hardboard
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Growing up in Eastbourne, I spent a lot of time at the beach. It was also so nice to raise our son there too for the first part of his life. This view is from Bishop Park looking back towards Petone and the Hutt Valley. The darker piece of land to the right is Point Howard. I loved the weird cloud bank on this particular evening. Just out of frame is my wife and son. They didn't make it in because I'm not good at painting people just yet :-)
The Wave
100 cm x 50 cm, acrylic on stretched canvas
$850
This was the first big wave I painted, so it's a special one to me. Since painting this, I've tried lots of other styles of waves, and various perspectives, but for some reason this simple straight line kind of wave is what I keep coming back to.
Pekapeka Surf
100 cm x 50 cm, acrylic on stretched canvas
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This is Pekapeka beach, on the Kapiti Coast. I wanted a nice rolling wave with some light behind it, some sea foam in the foreground and, of course, the iconic Kapiti Island in the background :-)
Cathedral Cove
55 cm x 55 cm, acrylic on stretched canvas
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I used to love visiting Cathedral Cove for a day trip over the summer holidays - you had to walk for miles down a little dirt track to get there in those days, and there was one long-drop toilet for the hundreds of people that would pack onto the beach.
Blue Wave
100 cm x 50 cm, acrylic on stretched canvas
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This wave turned out pretty bright and luminous (looks better under direct light!). I like the contrast of light and shadow in this one.
Coming Home
75 cm x 50 cm, acrylic on stretched canvas
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This wave ended up having on quite a peaceful serene feeling, and the purple shades in the shadow really pop. It has a kind of early morning bright sunlight feel.
Stormy Sea
160 cm x 50 cm, acrylic on stretched canvas
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This is the darkest and stormiest seascape I've done so far. At the time it was also the biggest painting I had attempted, at 1.6m long. I usually paint sunnier scenes, but I like the darker moodiness that this one seems to evoke.
Painting shown to almost the correct scale
Waikanae Beach Walk
100 cm x 50 cm, acrylic on stretched canvas
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This was a commission piece for a family who live at Waikanae Beach. The brief was to keep it light and sunny, but still have some decent swell, and, of course, have Kapiti Island in the background. I wanted to capture the beauty of walking on the coast on a fine weekend morning.
Serenity
150 cm x 100 cm, acrylic on stretched canvas
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This was a commission for a couple in Raumati. The owner had grown up at Paekakariki Beach and was hoping for something bright and sunny with those kind of luminous rolling waves you get in the summer. It is a big painting, at 1.5 wide and 1 m tall. While I was painting it I kept wanting to jump in and float around in the calm bit. It gave me a feeling of peace, so I called it "Serenity"
Radiance
150 cm x 100 cm, acrylic on stretched canvas
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With this one I was trying to get the breaking wave to look really luminous. It's a little less realistic than I usually try to paint, but I liked the energy it ended up having. It is also a big one,at 1.5 metres wide and a metre high.
Sunday Breaker
65 cm x 30 cm, acrylic on stretched canvas
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This is a tough, scrappy little wave that packs a bit of punch. It's a choppy, windy day and I've tried to capture it with some bright light behind it just as it's breaking. This is smaller than I usually paint, but it has a big presence when it's up on the wall. It's also very glossy and shiny. I painted it on a Sunday morning, so it is my "Sunday Breaker."
Houghton Bay Breaker
65 cm x 30 cm, acrylic on stretched canvas
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I took my son Yoshi out for a day in town and, after eating at Wellington's filthiest Burger King, we ended up out at Wellington's South Coast. I walked on the beach at Houghton Bay taking photos of the waves, and he sat in the car playing on his phone. I painted this wave to help me cherish this quality father-and-son moment.
Midday Surf
160 cm x 50 cm, acrylic on canvas
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"It's arrived! And I love it, love it, love it! Even better than the photo. Going to be very proud to hang a piece of your work in our house. Thank you! Whoop whoop!" :-)
I painted this very long canvas (1.6 m) on a cold rainy Saturday morning in my garage. I like having the door up and hearing the rain falling while I paint, it's kind of soothing. This wave ended up with a lovely owner in Auckland - it's always so great to know a painting has found a good home (and even better to know it was delivered in one piece).
Beach Walk
100cm x 85, acrylic on canvas
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This is an imagined beachscape that I want to walk along. While I was painting it I was wondering what I would find when I reached the distant dunes. Probably just more dunes...
Beach Walk is hanging in Wellington's coolest hair salon, Lawrenique. If you get a hair cut there, you can see it close up, it's got lots of texture and shiny bits.
Raumati Beach Walk
100cm x 85cm, acrylic on canvas
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Last summer holidays I decided to get myself trim and fit by walking from Paraparaumu Beach to Raumati Beach every morning, barefoot, toes in the water the whole way. This is the view of Kapiti Island on the way back. What you can't see is the coffee and almond croissant I'm holding as I walk. This painting is now hanging in a house in London.
Twilight Paddle
28 cm x 20 cm, acrylic on canvas board
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A few years ago I snapped a picture of Yoshi wading out into the shallow water at Paraparaumu Beach under a beautiful pink sky. I loved the photo, but never ever thought of painting it, because back then I didn't paint at all. After I started painting, and I came across this picture, I knew I had to try it. I can't draw or paint people (yet), so he looks like a stick figure, but the water came out okay!
Olsson's Ocean
28 cm x 20 cm, acrylic on canvas board,
Not for sale
Albert Julius Olsson (1864–1942) was a British maritime artist, and I love his paintings. So much so, I wanted to try copying one of them. And Olsson's Ocean was the result. I'm not hugely into copying paintings, but it's good for practice sometimes! No need to compare mine with his (below). I think he wins this round for sure.
This is the original painting by Olsson, which is stunning and beautiful. His work is well worth checking out. It has been said of Olsson, "He was a passionate sailor. His deep knowledge of the sea, the way it moved and rolled, the way the light fell and the way spume spread and colours danced, allowed him to paint it with great skill."
Saturday Surf
28 cm x 20 cm, acrylic on canvas board
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Sometimes it's hard to think of names for waves, so this one was named after the day it was painted on. But I think it also has that Saturday kind of feeling, the kind of day you want to hang at the beach and not worry about the time or anywhere else you need to be.
An artist friend bought this painting and got it framed, which I thought was awesome. It was just a thin A4-sized canvas board to begin with, but framing it really finished it off nicely. Cheers Simon!
White Water
50 cm x 25 cm, acrylic on canvas
$250
The undercoat for this painting was a light purple, and it really shows through under the white foam, giving it a soft, gooey marshmallow type of look. I love seafoam. I like how you get that moment when you hear the foam quietly hissing and fizzing and spitting in between the loud crash of waves. I feel like jumping into this painting and feeling that foam around my feet.
Choppy
50 cm x 25 cm, acrylic on canvas
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A great thing about this painting is what the new owner told me after purchasing it. He happens to be one of the most talented and gifted artists I know, which in itself was awesome. But he told me that he hadn't painted in a long time, and hadn't felt the motivation to paint, but this wave had inspired him to get back into it. I was really touched by that, and I'm so glad it's now a part of his home.
Rolling Wave
50 cm x 25 cm, acrylic on canvas
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I can't pinpoint exactly why, but this rolling wave is one of my favourites. It's not a huge flash canvas, and it rolled in quite discreetly as the fourth painting of a six-wave series, but for some reason it seems to stand out to me. If you agree, you could buy it - otherwise I might need to...
Stormy Seascape
100 cm x 50 cm, acrylic on canvas
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Beaches can be the most beautiful and amazing places to be in rough weather. This was one of my earliest seascapes and still my greyest and roughest, but I plan to do more stormy ones in the future.
ML's Wave
100 cm x 50 cm, acrylic on canvas with gloss finish
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"Painting arrived and we are thrilled, thanks!"
This is Meryl-Lynn's wave, and it will always remind me of her.
Wave III
100 cm x 50 cm, acrylic on canvas with gloss finish
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"The paintings arrived this morning!! They had travelled well [to Switzerland] and they’re up in my walls and looking great! I love them!! So nice to see them ‘in the flesh’ and see the layers & structure."
This was my first wave to travel overseas. It currently resides in Switzerland, and has since been joined by three smaller wave paintings. Thanks Leo, you are leading in the collection stakes!
Waves
100 cm x 50 cm, acrylic on canvas with gloss finish
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This was one of my first wave paintings! It now lives with a lovely family in Eastbourne. I love that translucent green colour you see in the waves' tips, it always feels nice to paint those parts.
Golden Sunset
75 cm x 50 cm, acrylic on canvas with gold paint and gloss finish
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"The painting has arrived safe and well. It is gorgeous! You have a wonderful skill."
This was a painting of a photo I took on Paraparaumu Beach one night. The sky was an incredible golden colour and the photo looked like a Turner painting.
My painting didn't look much like a Turner painting :-)
Pink Sky at Night
90cm x 60cm, acrylic on canvas
$450
This was inspired by another stunning Kapiti sunset where the water took on a beautiful dark blue/black colour.
Sparkly Sea
25cm x 55cm, acrylic on canvas
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This was a study of waves close up, with the aim of capturing that awesome sparkly glint that choppy waves get on a bright, sunny day.
Choppy Sea
100cm x 70cm, acrylic on canvas
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This painting is hanging on the wall at Elite Muscle Therapy in Wellington. Kaz is an amazing healer, so if you need any physiotherapy, and want to check out this painting, get in touch with Kaz!
Beach Path
55cm x 45cm, acrylic on canvas
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In the summer I like to walk on the beach every morning. I love getting to the start of this sandy track that leads down to the water. This was one of the first paintings I did.
Shoreline
90cm x 60cm, acrylic on canvas
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This was one of the very first paintings I posted on social media and I was surprised by the response. People were so positive and kind, and that encouraged me to start sharing more. So this painting is special to me.
Bee at Sea
100cm x 70cm, acrylic on canvas
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This was the first time I tried to paint a human being, and it happens to be my wife, Junko (Bee). It is based on a photograph taken on a summer's day down at Paraparaumu Beach.
Black Tide
70cm x 55cm, acrylic on canvas with gloss finish
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This was another very early painting of Kapiti Island at sunset. The water looked so black against the pink sky. The painted water has little glass beads in it that catch the light at certain times.
Want to know more?
If you would like to get in touch about any of the above works, please drop me a line and I'll get back to you :-)