Store Street Gallery in London currently handles sales of my work. This can be viewed via the 'Artists' section on their website: www.storestreetgallery.com
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As things stand, three distinctive subjects have evolved in my painting. The development of my woodland landscape work can be traced back to when I was studying Art, and therefore, in a sense, has dominated my thinking as an artist. On moving to France, almost inevitably, I returned to this subject to express ideas connected with the way the local farmers plant their woods in neat, regulation rows and columns. The light cast upon, and through the local forests is wonderful. Ever changing, disorientating, flat, then three-dimensional...these places connect you with solitude, being alone and yet not vulnerable. View the collection > |
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In contrast, travelling in Italy instigated a new interest in old, shabby and barely functioning doors, shutters and panels. I became drawn into the idea the surfaces of these architectural objects had been painted over countless times, in variations of the same (or contrasting) colour, patched up with seemingly random pieces of wood procured from some other, similar object to make do. Being Italy, for some odd reason, the home owners or artisans appear to be naturally sensitive towards the 'look' and balance of the object they are fixing, meaning the 'repair' feels harmonious and just right, whether it be in the colour chosen to paint over the decaying wood, or the size and placement of the patch being used. These objects become beautiful in their own right. I am, of course, aware of the notions of the Romantics, especially given the location is Italy - glorious decay and the sense of being part of a world that was once great. But making paintings based on these is an opportunity to redefine architectural beauty and re-new it in modern terms. View the collection > |
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The third theme which has emerged has been that of Structures. In a sense there is a clear link to the spatial ideas drawn from the woodland landscape work - working with strong horizontal lines, ambiguous space and solitude. However, this theme provides me with the opportunity to experiment with a wider repertoire of abstract ideas and visual elements, as well as consider the representational links to bridges, cranes, scaffolding and other similar structures that impact upon our lives. I'm interested in the way that a crane can shift from the idea of its function to an aesthetic - the way it frames the landscape around it, the way it creates space, the way it needs to adhere to engineering rules, forces and mathematics to keep it upright - and therefore matches classic artistic 'rules' connected to ideal proportion etc. These structures are part of our everyday modern society, yet we are so used to them we become blase about why they are there and disconnected to their visual properties. View the collection > |