Going forward with painting is a challenge. It’s far too easy to let influences of past work, or of work done by others, creep into what you are doing NOW, a NOW that must be both personal and contemporary. You can’t paint in the future – the most you can really do is to get to NOW. And being at NOW means leaving a lot of other stuff behind in the past. It’s not all forgotten, it’s just already digested, and I’m into cooking a new meal that will please my sensual taste buds, and those of my guest viewers! With food, the proof of the work is in the eating of it when it’s ready, and in painting it’s in the complete visual satisfaction when it’s finished for viewing and contemplation. There is a time when recipes and rules run out – to be in the NOW has its special characteristics that you’ve just added. It works, and you know it! And it feels honest and it feels contemporary.