Not all lives in the sun are idyllic and poetic: it may be unknown what travails are suffered to survive. Pessoa, Saramago: names from Portugal's rich, culture heritage. Through them as an immigrant and artist I drew solace. An appreciation and respect of the Portuguese character was forged from a reading of history and writings and an affection untempered.'Some books need to be approached from behind like an ardent lover kissing the back of your neck. Not to read the last chapter before the first but to hack into it two thirds through and work back after the end to the beginning. Saramago writes of the collective experience of the Portuguese and I am triggered to ask myself of the origin of mine - Irish but not Irish and a quarter unknown - forever foreign to myself ...'