As I worked high atop a bluff at South Gorge on North Stradbroke Island I was buffeted by wind and sea spray from the relentlessly crashing waves below. I could only dream of the comfort of a rewarding brew at the nearby Point Lookout Surf Club, shown top right in the painting, as I strove to capture the action of the waves breaking on stone and sand.
A note on the “barnacles”:
My works feature protrusions inserted into the boards in a semi-random pattern. Initially, this design served a practical purpose: to protect wet paintings during transport by allowing them to nestle together, like a babushka doll, without smudging. However, I also wanted to explore how these protrusions might influence my creative process on-site, potentially sparking unexpected metaphors. The protrusions can be interpreted as either natural (like barnacles or rock outcrops) or man-made (like screws or rivets), depending on the subject.