Artist Statement

The ability to completely immerse an audience in a two-dimensional painting or drawing is a prevalent theme throughout my practice.   Encapsulating contemporary dramatic scenes through traditional painting and drawings techniques produce fascinating outcomes, with strong narratives and use of practical skills.  My oeuvre largely focuses on photorealistic depictions of figures, and portraiture.
 

Artists from the Renaissance era such as Caravaggio, Artemisia Gentileschi and da Vinci act as a huge inspiration of mine, however, I continue to draw contemporary artists such as Chuck Close and Jonathan Wateridge into my practice.
 

A recurring element within my practice is the use of Chiaroscuro lighting to emphasise the drama within the composed scenes, whilst highlighting the features of the figures and expressions.  
 

My artworks often involve contemporary contexts encouraging the audience to question their own position in society in context to the work.  An example of this would be the narrative of alcohol abuse and its links to depression with the hopes of challenging the viewer to observe their own dependence on alcohol.
 

I believe it is important to focus on modern societal issues, whilst continuing to develop and utilise Renaissance painting and drawing techniques, thus combining the traditional with the contemporary.