I don't think of myself as a rebellious artist, a lot of people have said that about me because I came from Cornwall and choose to paint people in what they considered to be an urban style instead of Cornish landscapes. I've never agreed with them. It's bullshit.

I used to use a lot of words in the paintings but stopped because it created a narrative - or an answer to a question.

I like to listen to a lot of classical music when I'm painting, the most simplistic stuff I can find. I like simple piano.

If you can see a world within a portrait I would be happy with that. I don't want to tell the story with a painting, though. I'm trying to get away from the story- from the beginning and the ending.

Painting can be like poetry but as somebody who creates both I feel the necessity for both so they cant be that similar. Sometimes I think it's as basic as not wanting to get dirty.

I sometimes use music as way of getting back to a certain time, dredging up stuff from the past and putting it down on canvas.

The spirit of a painting is very hard to explain and articulate. I can't say it's not intentional because that is the mark I'm trying to hit, however I don't feel I have much control over it.