I am surrounded by inspiration. I live in a small village in the Teme Valley in Worcestershire. The views from my home and studio are magnificent, a landscape artists paradise in fact. Unfortunately I do not paint landscapes. Another inspiration is beautiful women. An exhibition of pictures by Pietro Anigoni inspired me many years ago and I embarked on a period of portraiture. It was exciting, stimulating and very nerve wracking. It always worried me that the man paying for the ladies portrait would not be pleased with my painstaking efforts. I decided I was not a born portrait painter and returned to my earlier passion of racing cars.
Given the choice of model in art school, a racing car would always be my first and favourite. Back in the late fifties I drove a Formula 2 Cooper at Brands Hatch on two occasions with the Cooper Training School - they failed, however, to notice my potential as a future world champion! I was also once the passenger in a racing BMW that was hurtled round Brands Hatch by the great Derek Bell. It was both terrifying and inspiring – a glimpse into the passionate world of motor racing from the inside.
I love racing cars, their stylish shape, their engineering excellence, the sound of their engines, but most of all to see them driven hard by skilled drivers against other machines, that really inspires me
