For thousands of years, humans have tried to find an advantage or reassurance from predicting the future - from reading signs and performing rituals, to consulting oracles, crystal balls and Tarot cards. In these uncertain times we live in, I began looking again at the symbolism of the Major Arcana of the Tarot, and breaking them down into basic graphic shapes that still communicate meaning and echo the hand-printed designs of the 1700s. My Dad used to collect match boxes from all over the world (I used to bring them back for him too), and these too are more a thing of the past; matches give a bright, brief light - but can have all sorts of implications (to light a fuse, to banish the darkness). Matches were called Lucifer's, as Lucifer was the bringer of light, and illumination can be literal as well as metaphorical.

In many ways, this series was a response to the wider chaos of the world - the pandemic, the global geo-political situation - the sense of things spiralling out of control. I moved back to the UK with my family, and reconnected with many places I loved as a child - including the the great stained-glass cathedral windows of Canterbury Cathedral, and the tidepools of the Kent Coast. Made with the flotsam and jetsam I have accumulated through my career, fragmented, yet whole - the seemingly random and ever-changing connections that weave us all together.

Animated images shown are available as unique NFTS; physical lenticular pieces are limited edition 24” x 36” panels (edition of 10), but naturally differ from the animations and are best seen in person.

This series is an on-going project between myself and well-known artist, Diane Burko. We initially began working together in 2017, and produced the first chapter of this project as part of Diane’s “Kai’Apapa” (to the reefs) project. From that point on, we have come together to explore and further the conversation about how the natural world is impacted by climate change, from Diane’s field observations of salt flats, lithium fields and sandstorms in Chile’s Atacama Desert, to the ever-growing threats of wildfires and mass deforestation.

Each of these circular presentations are referential - providing multiple interpretations from a “portal” view under water to an aerial perspective from a satellite, or a microscopic glance into the movements of polyps. The resulting images are both beautiful and compelling, physically and emotionally engaging the viewer.

Diane’s career has spanned more than 40 years, and she is renowned for investigating monumental and geological phenomena throughout the world - both on the ground and from the air. Her work connects art and science, and in her own words, she is "inviting audiences to emotionally engage with environmental change where scientific data alone may leave many perplexed.”

Darkly comic. Deadly serious. We are the architects of our own colourful destruction.

Absurd Politics (I): triptych, parts I & III 24” x 36” archival pigment print with lenticular lens, part II 24” x 24” archival pigment print with lenticular lens (3D). Edition of 10.

Absurd Politics (II): 18” x 24” archival pigment print with lenticular lens. Edition of 10.

Although I did want to create something that had aesthetic beauty and elegance in and of itself, it is the duality of this series that compels me the most. I am drawn to the tension between the tightly coiled and controlled energy of the syringe, juxtaposed against the jubilance of the colour escaping out into the frame. This contrasting visual evokes a visceral feeling for me, and is deeply expressive of my relationship to art and, indeed, myself.

Although at first glance, this new series seems like a departure for me (and perhaps it is, visually), it actually shares many common themes with my other work – the ambiguity of meaning, how we, as individuals decode and interpret what we see (what that reveals about us as much as the work), and the nature of beauty, playing on scope and scale.

The Abstraction Of Memory explores how our past experiences inform our present, how we interpret what we see, and what that reveals about ourselves. Memories distort and evolve, and are fluid in nature, and this is echoed by the pieces as we interact with them.

Combining what at first seem disparate thoughts on the nature of art, human development, and the challenges (both physical and mental) facing women in today's world.

Impossible Goddess reflects my own personal thoughts - leaping from the female-centric early religions and artworks, through classical interpretations of what it is to be a woman, and how modern society often leads to more questions than answers.

Themes of gender representation, the real and imagined, and exploration of paintings and icons reoccur throughout my work.

What is beauty? What lengths do we go to achieve an ideal? Is it attainable? Obtainable?
Is it fragile? Gender or age specific? Has the ideal changed over time? Dictate by society and culture, or more personal?
The idea of beauty represents different things to different people - from the physical to more emotional traits, from the manufactured to the natural world. Our vision of beauty and how we confront it is intriguing, inspiring and alarming, and begs the question: does everything come with a cost?

All images are lenticular - transitioning as the viewer moves past , but an approximation of the transition is shown here.

Freud suggested our psyche had three parts - Id, ego and super-ego; that we have "good" and "bad" in our personalities is also not a new thought and some would say, self evident. The concept of the trinity is almost as old as mankind, and can be seen throughout the history of the human race - from early pagan beliefs to modern-day religious ones. Overlaying these ideas is a commentary on  masculinity, what makes a man a man, and a more personal analysis of my feelings towards my father after his death. He was one and all of these things to me.

The set of three images was used to produce one lenticular image, that transitions between the 3 characters. Measures 3' x 4' (edition of 10). 

 

What is real and yet surreal? How do we recognise and identify with images? What connections have we unconsciously stored in our memory? These pieces not only reference famous Magritte works, but also my own previous explorations involving paintings and icons.

Lenticular images - these are 3 dimensional images made up of many individual frames, 36" x 48", each an edition of 10.

 

These images are at first playful, but provide a simple yet enticing facade for more serious questions: How we eat - in fact, how we consume, and what exactly are we doing when we do it? Perhaps more importantly, how are these habits formed? This is not a series about judgement - but of questioning things we often spare no time thinking about.

Each image uses a lenticular lens, that allows the piece to transition - an approximation of which is shown here.

What defines us as people - Gender? Race? Sexual Orientation? Culture? How do we identify ourselves and those around us, and how do we form our responses and preconceptions? This series of images seek to provoke the viewer to question these issues within themselves, questioning how exactly we learn and form opinions about the society we live in.

 All images are lenticular - transitioning as the viewer moves past from part 1 on the left, to part 2 on the right (the middle image is an approximation of the transition).