My latest commission, I was asked to paint for an environmentalist & to create something that had little impact on the planet. The image had to be of honey bees (as my client keeps his own) & I was given creative license.

To start with, I had to find something to paint on. Storm Callum hit us in October, blowing down a few trees along his way. I went to the men’s shed in Walkinstown to see the types of wood they had & found this lovely piece that had blown down in Tymon Park, Dublin. They cut it into three sections for me, this was now my surfaces paint on.

After drying the wood out, I had to find an image. I decided to paint the type on bees my client kept (Irish honey bees) & to paint the bees busy working, collecting honey. I left some of the wood exposed, as I felt it was the perfect colour for the honeycomb & to finish off, I will varnish with beeswax.

I really enjoyed painting this commission, having something to work on that pushed me out of my comfort zone & made me think outside the box.

I’m very happy the way the final piece has turned out.