‘These pieces have developed over the past year further to work done for my final degree show. I am largely inspired by landscape and I began by exploring ‘edge land’ areas of Sheffield – places often overlooked and considered to be devoid of typical aesthetic beauty. The ‘Express Excess’ image arose after seeing a couple of plastic bags caught high in the branches of a tree outside a newly built supermarket. They remained resolutely in place for weeks as if almost tied in place. The tree although having only been there for a short while was already covered with graffiti – I took photos and found it an arresting image and a reflection of how we live now. I used mixed – media (oil, acrylic and tapes).
Following on from this I began to explore Park Hill, the Grade II * listed council estate and one of Britain’s largest examples of Brutalist architecture. The site is currently undergoing regeneration and as such is an interesting place to observe. Part of the estate has undergone transformation into shiny, luxury flats whilst half remains boarded up and derelict. A remaining quarter is still inhabited – the residents remaining resolutely in situ until finally decanted.
I am ever drawn to the un-refurbished areas where the memories and layers of the past are almost tangible. I have been working with materials that are integral to the estate itself, such as concrete, aerosol and aluminium. This is demonstrated in my second painting ‘Decanted’ where I have mixed concrete into oil paint and layered aerosol paint on top.’
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