The Weeping Glen, 2022
acrylic on panel
acrylic on panel
My work forces the viewer to take a journey into slices of the everyday, often making you face up to areas or issues that people tend to sweep under the carpet. Having grown up in Edinburgh my whole life, I find constant inspiration in this ever-changing city. Coming from the suburbs, I get annoyed at the clichéd picturesque postcard image we have created of my city. Don’t get me wrong, Edinburgh city centre IS a naturally beautiful place built on history and culture but, just like any other city, we have problems with violence, crime, drugs and prostitution. Therefore, I try to capture a truer picture of the 'Real Scotland', far removed from the tartan gift shops and shortbread tins. My recent paintings have been inspired by Scotland's Industrial and military past, looking at the now decaying machinery that defended and sculpted our country, Some of my paintings take direct inspiration from childhood and a nostalgic view of the past, documenting a world changing from the familiar to the unfamiliar. By choosing mundane scenes that most people would consider to be ugly or eye sores, I make the viewer question why someone would take the time to paint something that is usually dismissed or ignored, further making them question the world around them. A lot of my more recent work has been inspired by music and film. I am drawn to artists who are obsessed with the everyday and where ‘place’ is a key influence. My architectural paintings are hard not to be inspired by the grid like structures of Mondrian and have elements of the work of George Shaw and David Hepher. The working class industrialism of L.S. Lowry and the heartfelt lyrics of Morrissey are massive influences. I have recently used inspiration from Trainspotting, Neds and This Is England in my paintings, vacant of people, to keep the eerie silence of a Shane Meadows screen shot. My artwork focuses the viewer to take a second look at things they take for granted. As Andy Warhol said;
"Everything has its beauty, but not everyone sees it".
My work forces the viewer to take a journey into slices of the everyday, often making you face up to areas or issues that people tend to sweep under the carpet. Having grown up in Edinburgh my whole life, I find constant inspiration in this ever-changing city. Coming from the suburbs, I get annoyed at the clichéd picturesque postcard image we have created of my city. Don’t get me wrong, Edinburgh city centre IS a naturally beautiful place built on history and culture but, just like any other city, we have problems with violence, crime, drugs and prostitution. Therefore, I try to capture a truer picture of the 'Real Scotland', far removed from the tartan gift shops and shortbread tins. My recent paintings have been inspired by Scotland's Industrial and military past, looking at the now decaying machinery that defended and sculpted our country, Some of my paintings take direct inspiration from childhood and a nostalgic view of the past, documenting a world changing from the familiar to the unfamiliar. By choosing mundane scenes that most people would consider to be ugly or eye sores, I make the viewer question why someone would take the time to paint something that is usually dismissed or ignored, further making them question the world around them. A lot of my more recent work has been inspired by music and film. I am drawn to artists who are obsessed with the everyday and where ‘place’ is a key influence. My architectural paintings are hard not to be inspired by the grid like structures of Mondrian and have elements of the work of George Shaw and David Hepher. The working class industrialism of L.S. Lowry and the heartfelt lyrics of Morrissey are massive influences. I have recently used inspiration from Trainspotting, Neds and This Is England in my paintings, vacant of people, to keep the eerie silence of a Shane Meadows screen shot. My artwork focuses the viewer to take a second look at things they take for granted. As Andy Warhol said;
"Everything has its beauty, but not everyone sees it".