​I have always been fascinated by contrasts between dark and light and how the shadows frame the sunlight. This was a scene painted on the beach in Croatia where there are wonderful views out across the islands opposite. So much of life goes on along the shore and just seeing the water lifts my sprits.

We lived for five years right on the beach in Papua New Guinea where sometimes the sea came right up into our garden, and when the waves were high it felt like being in a ship at sea! At night we could watch the fishermen out with lamps on each tiny boat, stringing their nets between them to catch the fish as they swam up towards the light.

A lot about painting is in catching the atmosphere and transmitting the feelings that stir us onto the blank page in front of us. Seeing the painting again later can transport me back to how exactly how I felt at that moment, sitting beneath the trees and listening to the gentle stirring in the leaves above.