The painting ‘Stepney Farm’ derived from the place of the same name, a city-farm in east-London.  Having grown up in ruralCanada, the absurdity of seeing turkeys stomping around the middle ofLondonseemed even more striking.  Perhaps this irony caused me to look at the appearance of a turkey in a more curious way. The turkey took on new dimensions.  I now saw it s some prehistoric animal, part reptile and part bird, which somehow escaped extinction.  The more I worked with the image the stranger it seemed. The turkeys appeared as skinheads walking the streets.  Then again I saw it as a self-portrait, a rural Canadian transplanted inLondon.  The turkey seemed not to be aware that it didn’t belong and walked proudly through my paintings.

Letter from the artist, n.d.