I draw animals in coloured pencil, one fine layer at a time, on plain white paper. I leave out the background, so each animal comes forward out of the page.

Most of my work is portraits of people's pets, drawn from their photos. The eyes and the fur are what I care about most, down to the shine on a nose and the name on a tag.

I live and draw in Knysna, on the Garden Route. While I work, the paper is taped to my board and a glassine sheet keeps my hand off the finished parts. Alongside commissions I draw wildlife and birds, and those originals are for sale once they're done.