I have had many studios since my first in London, in 1968, designed by Thomas Telford at St Katherine's Dock, but my present one is unquestionably the best. I have had it for about five years. Except for eating and sleeping I virtually live here. I come to the studio between nine and 10 in the morning, and I usually stay until seven or eight in the evening. When I have a lot to do I often work seven days a week.
The picture shows the big free-standing studio counter, which is really used like a palette. All of the painting is done using small rollers in individual paint trays so I need a lot of space. The sink is built into the counter because I use a water-based acrylic paint so I'm constantly washing the rollers. It is never usually this tidy. This photo was taken in between paintings and my assistant has tidied everything up. The floor was painted only the week before because it had become such a mess. Although the work that I do is very precise and looks very carefully done, it is, in fact, a very physical and messy process to make the paintings.
I'm currently making a tiled wall painting for the new DLR station in Woolwich, Arsenal and those are the colour samples of the ceramic tiles on the floor. I just laid them out so I could see them in relation to the colours of the paintings.
It is my bicycle but you don't often see me on it. It's a nice idea.
The studio has very high ceilings and very good light, the room is almost square, so you can stand way back and look at things. I had the opportunity to design it exactly to suit the needs of the kind of work I have been doing over recent years. This was a pleasure but also a risk. I have found in the past that by the time one finally manages to create ideal working circumstances, the work itself can change and all one's carefully realised specifications can become instantly redundant. Fortunately that wasn't the case this time.
