EXHIBITION STATEMENT

The current exhibition ‘Elemental’ is a snapshot of both my past and present on many levels. My work continues to draw on the earthly elements of water, air, earth and fire but the way these are expressed has changed dramatically over the last 15 years. I have bought together my favourite works from the past that I chose not to sell at the time and my current work to create this exhibition. My work has always paralleled and expressed my emotional and spiritual journey with my life mantra ‘Heal Yourself, Heal The World’.

In earlier works you notice they are on board with cement mountains and oil’s and varnishes to create a thicker texture. I needed them to be understandable; to show a landscape, a scene, a mountain, a fire, something relatable for the viewer and myself to show my pain of what felt like walking through fire, trudging up impossibly high mountain after mountain and expressing this through both the image and heaviness of the materials used. In retrospect it also mirrors my mind with heavy thoughts and fixed ideas of myself and how I thought life should be, but also with that ever-present spark and beauty in the background, always there; patiently waiting to come forward.

As I continued expressing myself though my art, I became more aware of my mind and the thoughts and messages stored in my subconscious. Slowly as this awareness expanded there was no longer such a need to work with the heavy fixed cement based medium. You now notice works starting to be a bit more free in terms of materials and imagery.

This process has led me to my current work of almost pure fluidity. With much lighter water-based materials like gouache, acrylics and watercolours I am no longer defined by imagery, the idea the viewer needs to understand the work, see what I see or feel what I feel. It is a much more personalised process where I have become more in tune with the materials I am using and allowing them to express their own beauty without force but in collaboration.

ELEMENTAL