I'm Back...

I would firstly like to apologize for my silence the past few months, my time had been taken up by a dissertation and general stress of being in my final year of University.

My Practice has changed dramatically over the last few months, so below is a new body of work and Artist statement, enjoy!

I consider my practice as contemporary painting, through which I explore the overlay of past and present, fact and fiction and physical and metaphysical. My work traces the parallels between the ancient philosophical and religious understanding of past cultures and current developments within the study of science. Through this subject area I hope to create work that operates within a liminal space. Scientific research forms part of a grand narrative of myth and history, which continues to grow. Throughout history every civilisation has attempted to explain why and how we exist, form the Ancient Greek belief in elemental gods, to the study of Astrology in the Renaissance. It is a subject area with endless source material from many subject areas and, as an artist this provides much inspiration and possible outcomes.

Although my preferred medium is painting, my artwork lies between the disciplines of painting and sculpture. The tactility of paint and surface textures are particularly important to me; I saturate the canvas with traditional materials such as oil paints and painting mediums, but I also use less conventional materials such as sand, emulsion and building materials. I am interested in an alchemic approach to painting which realises itself in the form of heavy layering of materials to create a gravitational pull. Stylistically, my paintings are representational, but lie in the space between figuration and abstraction.

My current artworks involve the representation of the highly publicised scientific machine, the ‘Large Hadron Collider.’ Within the machinery I conceal iconography of medieval astrology charts, and also draw upon literature to reference past systems of belief that have now been discredited by modern science. I feel that as well as creating parallels between past and present; I explore relationships between microscopic and macroscopic. Through the representation of the ‘Large Hadron Collider,’ I make reference to the scientific search for the smallest form of matter; this is then contrasted with the depiction of astrological charts and diagrams to create a paradox. I feel that this series of paintings explores the role of history and mythology within a world more inclined to consider scientific thought over spiritual belief.