This work tells a story; an analytical representation of a feeling or a moment brought from the past back to the present with the aid of digital media, be it a photograph or a film still. 

 

I maintain the traditional function of a portrait, not just capturing the subject’s image, but also their identity. It is within this conventional structure that I challenge painting’s authenticity. Through varied painterly techniques and mixed-media, I push through the boundaries of a representational image and use the subject matter itself as a medium.

 

My fascination with candle light, and the evocative power of chiaroscuro, draws on painters such as Caravaggio and Rembrandt. Being heavily influenced by these great masters - as well as contemporary painters, such as Glenn Brown- it is my intention to represent today’s world with traditional, symbolic references.

 

Having always admired the human figure, my focus is to explore both the medium and the subject simultaneously; capturing the model’s personality with a camera and, conversely, inducing my own atmosphere with the brush. Manipulation is a vital aspect of my work as controlling the paint controls how the subject is perceived. The canvas is a stage for which the conversation between the paint and its audience can take place and the chiaroscuro sets the scene.