'Duffman', Bone Carving, 2009.
Still needs another sanding and was difficult adding that detail on a smaller scale, but nice to work with a good piece of bone. Starting some new paintings tomorrow.
P.S. Sweetman.....best entrance music for a hero has to be Yello's 'Oh Yeah'!

'Kynance Cove, England', 2003.
Another piece from a road trip to Cornwall in 2003.

'Virginia Lake, Wanganui', 2001.
During the five years I spent in Wanganui, I took many trips up to Virginia Lake to draw and sketch, not the pretty birds and lake, but the dark sinster corners leading off into the trees. I enjoyed giving the shadows some colour and this led to a series based on obscure little streams in the bush around Wellington.

'The Yes Guy', Bone Carving, 2009.
This needs a final sanding and I'm a bit disappointed that he is a little cross eyed. This will be the final bone piece for a while so I can concentrate on painting for the upcoming holidays. I will be getting some new bone soon too as I have had to use curved and stained scraps for a while now.

'Otto', Bone Carving, 2009.
This piece of bone has a mottled red stain through it but I am still reasonably happy with it.

'S.B', Cardboard and glue. 2009
For a class at school we are going to make pinatas and I made this as an example for the kids. I had intended to get all of the joints perfect, as a good example should be, but came to the the conclusion that it didn't matter if we were going to beat him into pieces anyway. Because of the shadows in this picture it looks like he has a mo' Flanders would be proud of. The idea came from Matt Couper's 'Hugs and Kisses' series.

'Nelson', Bone Carving, 2009.
This piece of bone is quite curved so it is difficult to get his hunchback and over-bite in the same photo. Everytime I want to move on and do something else I get another idea for a character to do but with holidays coming up, the focus will switch back to painting.

'Sunrise, Mt Sinai, Egypt', 2004.

In 2004 I spent two weeks in Egypt with a tour group travelling around by train and truck. Easter Monday we woke up at 4am and walked up to the top of Mt Sinai with other assorted pilgrims to watch the sun rise. The warm sun was welcomed by our frozen bones and the trek back past the monastery was just as spectacular.

'Worm's Head, Gower Peninsula, Wales', 2004.
Another piece from a little road trip around the U.K. The Gower Peninsula was very beautiful with its little bays and stone-walled, lined country lanes. Not far from the top of the path to this viewpoint was a quaint little tearoom, where I enjoyed a well earned cuppa and Devonshire scones.

'Number One', Bone Carving, 2009
All together now,
'Who controls the British Crown? Who keeps the metric system down?
We do! We do!
Who leaves Atlantis off the maps? Who keeps the Martains under wraps?
We do! We do!
Who holds back the electric car? Who makes Steve Guttenberg a star?
We do! We do!
Who robs the cave fish of their sight? Who rigs every Oscar night?
We do! We do!'
Boo-yah!

'Mljet, Croatia', 2006.
Another piece from the trip to Croatia in 2006.

'Kynance Cove, Cornwall, England', 2003.
During my first summer in the U.K I spent a long weekend in Cornwall staying in B&B's and visiting such delightful places as 'Mousehole'. Kynance Cove was near the southern most tip of the country and even during the English summer, was very cold for swimming.

'Cleetus Spuckler', Bone Carving, 2009.
Not the nicest piece of bone to work with but I quite like this so far. Other Simpsons candidates for future bone carving include 'Fat Tony', 'Apu' and 'Moe Syzlak'.

Bone Carving #2.

This week I've been working on this piece. I saw the Escher drawing last week and it gave me the idea for the old school skull in top hat carving. This needs a final fine sand and polish as I'm not too happy with it so far.

'From Matapaua Bay, Coromandel', 2003.
This was the first piece that I painted when I moved to the UK in 2003, in a tiny little dark room in Kensal Green. It was a drawing I had of a trip to the Coromandel just before leaving and the beautiful little bay (with its crazy steep access road) seemed a world away from the glum, dark London clouds and skyline.

'Naxos, Greece', 2005.
Another picture from Greece. I was only in Naxos for a day or two but my lasting impressions will be the time lazing on the beach, and a great little restaurant called the Picasso Mexican Bistro which did amazing burritos.

'Alesund, Norway', 2005.
I found this piece today, another from the Norway trips in 2005. Alesund is on the western coast of Norway and I spent a few days there, making trips inland to see the fjiords, before heading north towards the Lofoten Islands. Of all the places I visited when based in the UK, Norway and Morocco were my two favourites.

Dia de los Muertos Skull, 2009.
Lately of an evening I've been eyeing up the dog's bones lying around the house, with an idea to do some bone carving. This is something I have done in the last week with the details carved into the bone with an old file, it now needs a final sanding and a polish.

'Glendalough, Co. Wicklow, Ireland', 2004.
When I lived in London, one of my first trips away was to Ireland on a eight day tour around the south of the country. Glendalough was about 45 minutes south of Dublin and supposedly where some scenes for the movie 'Braveheart' where shot, apparently there were tax benefits for filming in Ireland.

'Ted's View, Peak District, England', 2006.
For a while, whilst living in the UK, I had access to a car and used it to make trips around England during weekends and school holidays. After a trip to see family in Liverpool I took a detour on the way back to London to travel through the Peak District. I was only there for a day but this view overlooked rolling hills, ferns, bramble and had a bench bearing a plaque 'Ted's View', testament to some sorely missed, local character.