Born in March 1970, the genesis of Casey's artistic path began under humble circumstances, copying Disney characters and immersing himself in an imaginary world at age 10. He recalled how the animators would make rough sketches of, for instance, water ripples or the movements of trees and the rustle of leaves in a cold wind and incorporate these effects to add a sense of mood. It was the attention to detail and observation of nature that gave a certain honesty and depth to the created work. The seeds of his work lay here - this early self-manifestation of awareness of 'atmosphere' and attention to detail and his impressive technical skills.

In 1983, at the age of 13, Casey watched a national television documentary of his great grandfather, Tinus de Jongh. So impressed was he, that he began on a determined mission of self-learning and throughout his life he bares the stamp of the De Jongh heritage. Oddly enough, his first drawings were copies of etchings by Rembrandt and Tinus and a year later he was able to cross-hatch in the manner of the etchings. Spurred on by his own progress he immersed himself further, neglecting school studies, and began his first forays into painting landscapes in watercolours.

At 14, Casey started his first pictures in oils and these included portraits after Rembrandt and intermingled with his first landscapes. The decline in his school academic performance resulted in him being sent to a private boarding school in Grahamstown when he was 15. The House Master allowed Casey an additional private backroom at his residence to paint - his first studio - and he could now work in private which allowed him to work through his problems associated with painting in oils.

With schooling over, Casey wisely decided not to make art a full time career, and began his studies towards a degree in civil engineering. He would nevertheless paint on weekends and often take time out with trips to Cape Point and the Winelands. His seascapes of this period are dark and moody
As a boy Casey was always fascinated with the sciences, and his interests now were especially focused on astronomy and to a lesser extent particle physics.

With a combined career as an artist and engineer in mind he completed his second degree, in electronic engineering at the University of Cape Town between 1999 to 2001, and financed all his expenses by painting on weekends. Unfortunately, opportunities in his field of interest were rather limited, and he was left with very little time to paint.

Since then he has been working as a full-time artist and although he is a commercial artist he manages to do work which is more experimental and personal whether it be sunflowers swaying in the wind under a threatening sky, a windswept Scarborough, expansive fog on the West Coast or a tender portrait. The departure from the De Jongh paintings is thus; not interested in creating 'picture perfect' Cape scenes, Casey is more subject to introspection and the subject matter is of key importance, together with complimentary colouring and to a lesser extent technique.