I have been involved with making things for as long as I can remember. The need to manifest the ideas in my head into images and objects is almost a compulsion for me. Being raised amongst the trees and hills in the wild north’s of Britain it is no real surprise that I harbour a huge love of the natural world and its inhabitants. I spent much of my youth exploring the rugged landscape in search of unusual creatures, objects and relics. This definitely informed my art, and fed my love for anatomy and detail – (something I always try to incorporate into my work), along with my interest in anthropology, ancient myth and folklore.

I grew up at a time where stop-motion, puppetry and meticulously hand drawn animation was all around: Jim Henson, Walt Disney, Don Bluth, were prominent throughout my childhood. As were the illustrated stories of Roald Dahl, Beatrix Potter and Maurice Sendak to name but a few. This visual narration combined with a steady diet of imagined stories, folklore, old myths, and faerie tales certainly ensured my imagination was well nourished.

Inspired by these worlds I would try and make the things I imagined and observed. So I began, using whatever methods and materials I could to do this; drawing, painting, sewing, and sculpting, salt dough, twigs, wool, coat hangers, tights, tinfoil my creations would take the form of puppets and fabricated monsters to my own miniature tree houses and markets stalls constructed from salvaged scraps for my mismatched dolls to live in. I was never short of creatures and worlds I wanted to make and bring to life. This is definitely something that has never really left me – although I hope my methods of making are now somewhat more refined.

As an adult I still pursue this childhood passion of making, and went on to study a BA (Hons) in Technical Arts and Special Effects at Wimbledon School of Art where I was able to specialise in sculpting, moulding and casting, model making, puppet construction, and fabrication. Since then I have been working in theatre, film and television and doing commissioned work for a wide variety of people and companies.