Sometimes the idea for a painting spontaneously presents itself as in plain air painting. I am inspired by the quiet meandering of a river, the vastness of a desert gorge, or the way afternoon sun lights the curve of an arch. Sometimes my paintings are inspired by impressions and feelings of a place. I use technique to express relationships and create a sense of atmosphere, time and space. The Painting in Layers method I use combines the value, shadow and shape ideas of chiaroscuro with color ideas from the impressionist painters to create color interest and harmony. I use a sensitive sketch line throughout, so that the image achieves an organic quality with the impression of movement, depth and dimension as well as subtle light effects such as transparency of water and sky.