Sometimes I wish I'd been exposed to the real world more as a child and then perhaps it wouldn't feel so extreme. Some of my work is to do with containing my sense of shock and wonder at the big picture, and I try to translate ogres and memories and reactions as well as blissful scenes. There seems to be a cycle, making portraits about personality, exploring stories and experiences in narrative imagery, and then escaping to nature to recover. I do admire pictures that communicate the real deal, that send shivers down my spine and if I had balls they'd get me by them.