Unnatural history

It’s great to be back in Hannover and back in the studio and painting again….. The small landscapes that started originally as ‘Newsblitz’ images in my ‘Collective Memory’ show are still important to me. I have taken the format and surface up to another level, moving from recycled card to card mounted linen. As acrylic paint is made from acrylic polymer, I am using it sparingly, repurposing any excess paint to start up the next paintings. The linen weave is visible, so the surface helps to create texture and unexpected results.

This is my contemporary twist on the sublime,  putting on record in an unscientific way, our waste of precious resources in gas leaks and explosions. Inspired by Californian artist Jessie Homer French. I discovered French at the Venice Biennale last year, her burning landscapes got me. They say her ‘works often involve imagery of stillness, estrangement, death, decay, and disaster.’

The first of this new series was the image of Portovaya exhibited in Newcastle last year, I now have many more to add unfortunately. While I am really enjoying the colours and atmosphere in painting these little bombshells, at the same time, I am gutted to be witnessing such spectacular loss. As this history is all man made, I am calling the series ‘Unnatural history’.