Girls
These depictions of girls with large, out-sized faces force the viewer to engage with their knowing expressions. The works investigate concepts of isolation, identity, and individuality.
The girls inhabit a world where all is dissociated; no matter how closely they are physically to each other, there is never any emotional connection. Their gaze is stronger inwardly than outwardly; asking for attention whilst avoiding interaction.
The composite, larger images intentionally shift perspectives and postures to reinforce this sense of total dislocation. Disengaged figures depicted against flat, coloured backgrounds devoid of context are interpreted only through their clothes, expressions, and poses. The expansive paintings draw the onlooker into the picture, and although the figures are over-scaled, there is an intimacy to their presence. Free-floating prepubescent girls knowingly look at the viewer, and one can not avoid their stare. At the same time, they show a stronger inward than outward gaze. The sitters seem to be asking for attention, but wanting to avoid interaction. They exhibit a range of attitudes from playful to serious, ordinary to mysterious, and engaged to disinterested.
Smooth, self-disguising blurred brush marks or pastel on tracing paper mimic the photographs from the images are taken and create a coolness to belie the emotional intensity of the work.
Things That Go Bump in The Sun, 2002, oil on canvas, 244cm x 305cm
Secret Fairies, 2003, oil on canvas, 244cm x 244cm
Honeybun, 1997, oil on canvas, 213cm x 275cm
Monster Munch, 2000, oil on canvas, 274cm x 183cm
See How They Run, 2004, pastel and fabric on paper, 110cm x 235cm
Old Girls
Rather than solely focus on young girls, I wanted to depict old ladies who were just as feisty and playful as the children. I included flying, upside cats as a twist on the usual witches’ familiar.
Be-bop, 1999, oil on canvas, 213cm x 274cm
Boys Who Are Girls
My themes of disguise and play continue in these celebratory, empowering works.
PlayStation, 2000, oil on canvas, 183cm x 366cm
Paint as Disguise
This series explores the concept of disguises both as means of hiding (or avoiding communication and relating) and an expression of dual personality. My protagonists are hidden behind masks, face paint and veils and are camouflaged by trees, bushes and flowers. These gardens are metaphorical settings alluding to the psychic space of relationships. Much is withheld, as the viewer only partially glimpses my protagonists, who evade real revelation, underlining a sense of dislocation and exclusion.
There is always something of a tension between wanting to be seen and blending in. On a personal level, I always longed for the cloak of invisibility. The inner world of the child is often a very savage place, full of terrors and sublime places too, hidden behind the mask of innocence. In that way you don’t need a disguise; childhood does it for there is something impenetrable in a young face.
Phantom Menace I, 2008, oil on canvas
Wallflowers, 2011, oil on canvas, 274cm x 244cm
Painted Flowers I, 2008, oil on canvas, 198cm x 366cm
ButterflEye Ball
ButterflEye Ball is an installation of twenty six paintings, like an alphabet, of pared down faces. These are so spare that they have a universality, devoid of any specific gender. They converge to form fluttering wings, where, at first sight, it looks as if a flight of butterflies is taking over the space, then the butterflies morph into eyes, so human flight dominate the space. Actually, they devour the space, transforming it into an immense flock of faces (with no specific gender or race). I've tried to reveal as much emotion as possible with the most economy of marks; instead of being clogged with matter/stuff, the paint breaths and allows the spirits air to come alive, swirl and soar.
I consciously use the economic blankness of the canvas and the empty spaces between the canvases to tease and goad the viewer to project their gaze. These images are playfully alive, flying out of the canvas, echoed by the airy, rustling lightness of translucent layers of paint.
ButterflEye Ball, 2019, oil on canvas, 26 each 60cm x 60cm (Installation)
ButterflEye Ball, 2019, oil on canvas, 26 each 60cm x 60cm (Detail)
Twister: Re-writing History
This series examines at how the present is twisting the truth by re-writing history and thus the future.
The title Twister alludes to the Joker, the evil comic book disruptor, and plays with the irony of how language and history are being inverted and falsified.
Twister, 2024-25, oil on canvas, Studio wall
Twister, 2025, oil on canvas, 212cm by 153cm
Ghosted!
Painters dance with ghosts, intricately sidestepping and borrowing from the spectres of art history. I see the world overlaid with visions of painters past, overlapping my present.
These are a playful exploration of in painting white nothingness-though without white. They’re almost naked under-paintings, yet are painterly up-close. I’m conscious of trying to bridge the gap between the immediacy and lightness of drawing and painting, with all its physical and historical weight. I wanted to let the paint breathe and swirl.
Ghosted! I-VI, 2023-25, oil on canvas, 122cm x 91cm
Ghosted! I, 2023-25, oil on canvas, 122cm x 91cm
Drawings
Project Man explores contemporary masculinity. The work highlights two personality disorders—narscissists and avoidants—using the images and words men choose to portray themselves on mainstream internet dating sites.
Yes, I Do Love Myself looks at narcissists (the disorder apparently occurs 50-75% more often in men than in women).
Getaway Guys depicts avoidants (a personality disorder where subjects avoid real involvement with others, crippled by feelings of inadequacy).
My third investigation is called Ten Parts Man, comprised of overlapping images of ten recurrent themes (ranging from disguises/fancy dress; grimaces; stress on bodies with bicep flexing; motorcycles and cars; sports and jumping; animals (curiously mostly at the same eye level); mirrors; too sexy for my shirt; hiding in clothes; reclining/sleeping). Strangely, many of these men seem to be advertising their bodies, almost as if they're ashamed of their inner selves.
I’ve made about 200 drawings of the men's heads. These are based on photos they posted on the net. The drawings are in candy coloured inks on glossy translucent plastic which allude to the computer screen. These are like a contemporary feminist butterfly collection with the prey turning into the hunter. One man admitted that cyber dating allowed him to pick women like choosing candies. Instead, my seductive sweet colours act as a mask and have a rawness, rather like an obsessive love-struck teenager’s bedroom.
The drawings are accompanied by a darkly funny sound piece, where the narcissists say “ If I could, I’d date myself” or “When God made me, he was showing off”. The avoidants, however, proclaim “I’m a walking disability, and when I’m not walking my personality does the rest” or “dribble only occasionally”. The cacophony of overlapping images, accompanied by the audio track played low, makes the viewer feel as if they've entered the minds of these men.
All these drawing are in ink on Mylar.
Project Man: Yes, I Do Love Myself! 2006–07, indelible ink on mylar
Spookfish
Spookfish, 2017-2019 series of 72 drawings ( each 100 by 70cm) in pastel and indelible ink on translucent paper. This series economically distills and reveals emotion. It is named after the midnight zone spookfish which has a translucent skull to catch any available light. These faces aren’t clearly a specific gender or race as I’m only interested in depicting inner emotions, not outer trappings. The forms are economically alluded to and the hands, present in every drawing, signal a semaphore of feelings.
In addition, there’s an airy, rustling lightness in translucent paper, echoing my theme of veiling or disguise. Layers of transparent inks and granular pastels tease the onlooker, adding to the playful hide-and-seek. These drawings consciously use the economic blankness of the paper to depict areas for the viewer to project their gaze; the whiteness of the page belies the darkness of the mood.
Spookfish, 2017, pastel and indelible ink on translucent paper, Series of 72 drawings, Each 100cm x 70cm
Spookfish, 2017, pastel and indelible ink on translucent paper, Series of 72 drawings, Each 100cm x 70cm
Hiding in Plain Sight
I titled of the series Hiding in Plain Sight because all the heads don’t reveal their eyes, which are the usual 'window of the soul'. I allude ludically to Messerschmidt, yet these are raw 2020 lockdown emotions, shared by all during the pandemic.
Hiding in Plain Sight (Lockdown) series, 2020, indelible ink on translucent paper, 100cm x 70cm