Artist Statement

I am a British artist based in Cambridge, UK. In my work, I explore the complexities of perception, vision and imagination and aim to question the notion of seeing as a passive act. I seek to examine the ways in which we interpret the world through vision and the subjectivity of this interpretation, questioning why one person may perceive something in a dramatically different way to another. I am interested in the realm in which visual perception meets imagination and how one discerns the imaginative and the perceptual contributions of a moment or an experience. In my work I aim to create visualisations of the collision of these two spheres in order to question the boundaries between the observed and the imagined. Through the exploration of blurred images, fragments of reality and glimpses of memories I intend to create visual ambiguities and invite multiple interpretations.

My process starts with photographing a variety of subjects using both analog and digital cameras. I then spend ample time editing and experimenting to create finalised images. These images then come together in a collage of sorts, as I blend and blur them together using the medium of oil paint on canvas. What all the elements of any of my compositions have in common is that the subject is light, taking on many forms – illuminating, dappling, flaring, flashing, glistening and so on. I often prefer to work on a large scale to allow enough from for my process of ‘collaging’ to expand and change for the duration of any of my pieces.

My pieces aim to represent the fluid and fragmented nature of seeing, often focusing on its limitations. I am particularly fascinated by light, as ultimately visual perception cannot exist without light. Light is the subject of all art in this sense; however, I try to look at light as separate from its carriers and its reflectors. I draw on illuminationism, in which light operates at all levels of reality. I want to draw attention to the magic of natural light, and the way that it can completely transform its ‘subject’ and change its physicality, even if only for a fleeting moment.  Ultimately, my work is intended to evoke curiosity and reflection. I invite the viewer to experience the world through unfocused eyes for a moment and reflect on what it really means to perceive.