Sipped Halo

I’ve been considering a couple of the new paintings in my latest body of work for the exhibition. They are by their very nature awkward, as they are stretched across a ninety degree angle. This means that they are tricky and unnatural for wall mounting and comfortable viewing of the whole image at once is seriously compromised. Thankfully, this is exactly what I was hoping to achieve…

The works reflect the perspective of Jason, the nine year old autistic boy at the centre of the story (Slipped Halo)which inspired the exhibition. I wanted to suggest his view of events with a one sided perspective. Jason is detail specific. He is uninterested in the genral soup of “stuff” within his environment.

By incorporating a detail which requires closer inspection one one side of the canvas, the whole of the other side is obscured from view, meaning that the viewer has to work harder to appreciate the overall outcome.

The autistic persons interpretation of events can be abstract at times, as certain nuances are misinterpreted or lost altogether on receipt of environmental or social information. The paintings will be presented without clear context or content and act as a passive vehicle in some cases, with which to focus on the specifics that are meaningful in Jason’s world.

Today is exactly one month until my show opens, and having lifted my head above the soup of concerns associated with actually making the work, I’ve begun considering the partnership between imagery and the written backdrop to my exhibition.

For at least 12 years I have been painting in an abstract language which, until recently I’ve neglected to actively examine with a wider consciousness.

Working in a relatively isolated arena it is remarkably easy to become disengaged from the kind of dialogue and criticism that is helpful for contextualising and developing one’s work. Thankfully, my decision to apply to study for an MA demanded that I begin exactly that process by writing a study proposal. I was offered a place at Camberwell in March, though in an effort to save up for it, I won’t begin my study until September 2010.

Writing and talking is obviously pretty essential to art. It’s perhaps difficult for the observer to appreciate therefore how this clear link can become lost as a result of creative isolation, fostering an attitute of disempowerment and “fringe thinking”.

Once you begin to venture back into the territory of sharing in word form though, it’s possible to understand how this can become the dominant facor in shaping and characterising one’s practice, making for something much more whole than it might otherwise be.

Having used my own short story as the starting point for my forthcoming show I have no hesitation in admitting that it has breathed new life into a previously “autopilot” approach to my studio practice. Words and visual art are inextricably linked in our culture, and though I’m not a particulatly verbal individual I can clearly see the role that a clear narrative provides for shaping and informing imagery, even that of a non-representational nature.

With 36 days until the preview of my forthcoming exhibition, this provides a useful period of reflection to get my teeth into exactly where my latest body of work originates from and perhaps, where it is likely to head next…

I hope also to get a good look at the paintings I’ve produced (and am currently producing) for the show and summarise how successfully I’ve managed the narrative which links the visual and tactile nature of the work.