It is fair to say that my paintings contain elements of wrongness. I have always been drawn to dysfunctionality; the way objects, situations or people come across. In a painting e.g. one just accepts and allow for what is happening there, to be, even if it’s a horse with no legs, two legs or what not. I am not particularly on friendly terms with horses after almost being thrown off one of those Portuguese sports cars…a Lusitano, this one with only one horsepower (which is not true, one horse is roughly 14.9hp, which is odd when you think about it, isn’t it?).

It is fascinating to eliminate certain bits of anything but we still try to make sense of it. In the painting with two backsides mirroring each other, you start to think about this animal as a one trick pony. I mean, honestly, what can it do? What are the possibilities? Not really going anywhere. There is something mechanical about it, like those old fashion toys you turn up and their legs keep walking even if they are lying down. Or as in the other painting with a horse on two legs, no front legs, peacefully eating away. He needs to keep eating in order to stay up and there is some kind of truth in that, one must eat to be in this world.

See more paintings by Sally Kindberg

The subjects are taken from, female leading characters from recent European crime dramas and thrillers, women frequently portrayed as in a state of inner conflict. These are women who are strong, dominant and seemingly aloof, routinely cast as unable to form lasting relationships and for whom a private life and a work life are at odds (an issue rarely touched on in male character leads). They are fascinating, flawed, avowedly anti-feminine subjects; subjects who refuse objectification. I hope to capture a moment, a gesture, an expression that conveys some of their pragmatism and turmoil and also their strength and beauty.

Using the tradition of portraiture the paintings have been adapted from fiction, superficially the image is taken from a photographic source, but the image is allowed to develop through the process of applying the paint; gestural brush marks and the heightened use of colour add an emotional and expressive dynamic to the work.

The subjects for these two paintings are the female leads from Spanish and Swedish thrillers (respectively). The titles are lifted directly from dialogue (subtitles). The title is an important aspect of the work, in part, to acknowledge the fiction that inspired the pieces and also to hint at a possible drama waiting to be uncovered.

I like the flexibility of oil paint enabling you to build up a surface, adjusting the consistency to work in washes, glazes and thicker impasto. I work through a painting, from initial drawing with thin washes of paint, to applying thicker mixes of colour. Some of the mark making is intentionally quite abstract but at the same time designed to capture form and expression. I use colour in a way that I hope serves to enhance the vibrancy and heighten the mood of the piece.

See more paintings by Sal Jones

From an early age I have had an interest (border lining obsession, as do so many things I turn my attention to) with depicting females. I love to paint the female form and even more so, the female face. I contort it with massive doe eyes filled with sorrow and make up dripping down the surface. My studio, overspilling into my home, is filled with face after female face.  After one of my art tutors questioned me on my sexuality (straight), it provoked an internal look as to why and where this fixation stems from. The answer I have provided myself is that the satisfaction is not in portraying exclusively females but rather the vulnerability that is so much more apparent in women. It brings to mind a favourite quote of mine; ‘art should comfort the disturbed and disturb the comfortable’. My work is constantly referred to as ‘dark’, ‘unsettling’ even ‘disturbing’. I don’t shy away from that as it’s what I am most interested in illustrating and very much a reflection on myself. In that sense the artistic process is very cathartic.

‘Nothing Tastes As Good As Skinny Feels’ is a quote Kate Moss once said in an interview that was met with much controversy.  Having grown up with a mother who excels in the field of healthy eating and nutrition, I personally believe this to be true. Knowing that the mass opinion would disagree however made it a fun subject to construct an image around. Art should act as a catalyst for debate and I don’t believe sensitive subjects should be shied away from.  This image contrasts the visual beauty of models and the emptiness that fills (so to speak) so many of them.

One of my favourite subjects to paint is Kate Moss. Aside from the aesthetic satisfaction I remember reading an article on which she spoke of having to pose as young teenager half naked with Mark Wahlberg. She said she cried for hours after and found the whole experience quite unbearable. When I look at pictures from early on in her career I really feel you can pinpoint that deadness in the eyes, the dissatisfaction of her modelling obligations but hidden beneath an immaculate exterior. This juxtaposition is very satisfying for me as an artist to expose.

See more paintings by Phaedra Peer