"A Family Meal" Painting

"Although I state that much of my work stems from the imagery thrown up by depression, I would say that it is also the imagery of unconscious connection.Indeed the two are irrevocably entwined. It is no accident that the appearance of animal symbols and the use of bodily products such as hair, urine and blood is also influenced by my former work as a veterinary surgeon. Some time spent in psychoanalysis has helped me to illuminate these connections to find a personal mythology, which I believe connects to a universal meaning of what it is to be human. The `otherness` of animals, their power, vulnerability, unselfconsciousness and instinctual drives, and their relationship with us, are potent symbols of qualities we also have - qualities which we struggle with in our attempts to remain in control of ourselves and our society. It is where these tensions meet that my work is situated." Studio: Sculpture Shed, Spike Island, 133, Cumberland Road, Bristol, BS1 6UX. Tel: (0117) 929 2266; Email: michael.hayter@blueyonder.co.uk