‘Geordie girl in a lilac dress’ (2013) , oil on linen, 76 x 102 cm  2013

Portrait of Margaret Clark, an art student and my future wife, standing on the corner of Oak and Suffolk Streets, Scotswood, Newcastle upon Tyne. The subject appealed to me because of the contrast between Margaret's youthful beauty and the old, mean working class streets in which she grew up. The setting, which was not far from Clark’s home at 178 Stone St, is borrowed fr...