Interview taken from Trakmarx magazine in August 2007:
The reason I paint is down to two things:
1/ I love music.
2/ I love oil paint.
If they didn’t exist, these paintings wouldn’t exist either, and I would be silently rocking in a corner somewhere. All of my work is executed to a soundtrack of rock & roll, punk rock, blues, klezmer, jazz, gypsy, country . . . the list goes on.
Whether you are a drummer, a poet or a painter, creativity all comes from the same place. So, for me, it is very natural to use music as a tool to create something very different. The energy and passion in the music is like petrol on a fire. It drives me on.
The same thing applies to oil paint. I love how it smells and looks. It has its own characteristics. It’s like driving an old car, you need to know what you are doing, and have a feel for it!
There is a thread running through all of my work - and that is the red I use. It is the same colour as blood, which is why my paintings are often referred to as aggressive. That’s what I like about it. It evokes feelings of love, hatred, passion, anger - all the things that keep us going.
I am fascinated by ‘old’ things and things that are falling apart: old factories, old cars, old towns, old bars. I try to recapture the textures of rust and worn-out surfaces in my paintings. I try not to think too much about an idea before I start it. Usually, my gut instinct is the one I follow. That’s how I hope people look at my stuff too: not with their head - but with their gut!