Since the New Year I've also been working on a commission to paint a racing glider for its civil aviation pilot owner. The introduction of a limited colour pallet is a direction I'm turning to, to create simple but attractive images that are 'easy to engage with'. In the same way that a gothic cathedral is limited to stone, glass, wood and lead, this and other recent paintings are starting to have a limited ingredients. I want my paintings to be gentle, shimmering, at ease. I want to let the viewer bring themselves into the viewing experience, not dictate to them.

Racing modern gliders is a sensorial experience full of intense calculations to manage location, energy and speed - let lone the craft of flying. One's eyes are everywhere - fleeting glances. In painting without sharp focus I've tried to recreate that fluttering gaze and galloping mindset.

'Summer soaring'

Acrylic on canvas. 100(h) x 100(w) cm

The year has also seen preparations for the 2026 Guild of Aviation Artists summer exhibition. This year my submission will be lighter, smaller watercolour studies. The focus being to create simple drama. In this case, a vintage Tigermoth - delicate but necessary, actively searching its way up through gaps in tumbling clouds - detached from the detail of the fields below.