It is a privilege to live in a country which still boasts a huge expanse of unspoilt natural and diverse land. With the artistic talent I am fortunate to have been given, I feel compelled to celebrate this indigenous eden.

We too often only see the negative, in this strife-torn South Africa, and I hope my small effort to remind people that there is still beauty aplenty will instill some positivity into their hearts.

I was born in England on the outskirts of Manchester, and came to Johannesburg at the age of 9 years. To a grey, drab Lancashire boy, this was an adventure of huge proportions, and my first trip to the Kruger National Park captured my heart, and the feeling has stayed with me ever since.

I have always enjoyed painting and sketching even though I was never formally trained, but while studying to become a veterinarian in the early 1980’s I tried my hand at wildlife and became a regular exhibitor at Artists under the Sun, in Johannesburg.

I was always torn between a career as an artist or as a vet, and although I am still a practising companion animal clinician, I continue to paint as often as family time allows me.

My style has changed as the years have passed, and I am becoming braver and bolder with colour and contrast. Oil has always been my medium, as it is very forgiving of mistakes – and we all make mistakes now and then!

In the last few years I have started trying my hand at other subjects, such as French and Spanish village scenes, but a trip to Namaqualand in 2012 opened up all whole new tube of cadmium yellow and orange, and I really enjoy depicting the Northern Cape in August and September when the flowers cover an otherwise desert landscape.

I hope to be able to paint for many more years, but more than this, I pray that the landscapes, the flora and the fauna will still be there to be appreciated by everyone.