My work has overtones of naive painting, but I've been very strongly influenced by my background, interests, and education. There are references to early Italian Renaissance painting (things I saw in Capri, Naples, and later in visits to Florence.) I enjoy the iconic quality to work from that period, also the frequent focus on women. To name particular artists would be to place undue emphasis, but some memories (dating back to teenage years) are certainly in the back of my mind.

There are also references to Mughal art (flat surfaces, bright colors, cloisonne, strange skin colors.) I am Ceylonese (not Muslim), born in Singapore to a family with strong ties to Britain, and a very British outlook. I live in Australia (25 years), and travel frequently to the USA and Europe.

There are several painters who have influenced me: Murillo (the subject matter resonates -- I have three children), Ken Kiff (British, for his narrative quality), and Charles Blackman (Australian figurative painter.) Still, when all's said and done, my style is very personal.

I paint instinctively, and my work draws on personal experience and observation, or at least memories, sometimes treasured up since childhood. My work is usually upbeat (occasionally sarcastic) and often with a touch of humor. There is almost always some narrative content.

The child in "The Doll" (a recurring image) is probably me (and I still have that doll.) "Journey" (a similar but larger piece) is about growing up and, on another level, has to do with a childhood experience walking alone through a forest. "The Chaperone" refers to activities of my teenage children (and to other things.) Women's issues sometimes crop up, although not in a dogmatic or insistent way. I have three children (Kaspar, Max and Saskia), a mathematician husband (Lyle.) We share two dogs, 2 cats, goldfish, music and other preoccupations. Painting and drawing is my life.