Migrants Painting

There are various influences in this work, but my main desire was to create a tableau that could be read from left to right and would have a sense of forward motion. The current state of Europe and the Middle East with the migration of large numbers of people was one impetus for this piece - the chaotic and insecure human tragedy of mass displacement creating an anxiety which spreads across the continent. However, although my painting starts from this premise and shows the vulnerability of the displaced, it is also a symbolic piece. Fear drives from the left to the right of the picture and dark, numinous forces drive the fear, with military figures of ambiguous intent. There is a sense of anxiety throughout, not least about mortality, which extends beyond the physical act of migration/displacement. I wanted also to depict a frieze of fear and conflict which would 'migrate' to a presumed state of security, symbolised by the woman with a baking tray of cakes (although these have been upset) and the old couple at the far right of the painting, who stand in front of a golf course in the distance. Alas, even these people look with fear over their shoulders, realising that they too are not secure, and the old people seem trapped - with conflict and encroaching threat behind them and the finality of the sea before them. In the centre of the painting, in the background, is a grand building of indeterminate function: is it a basilica, denoting religious authority? Or is it like the White House - the centre of political power? This uncertain function only serves to increase the sense of unease in the painting. Overall, I think of this painting as a frieze of life in an uncertain world. I am also influenced here by the work of Paolo Uccello - especially "The Hunt In The Forest" - look at the flowers, but none in the painting notices them.....

Painting:Oil on Canvas

Original:One-of-a-kind Artwork

Size:157.5 W x 35.4 H x 2 D in

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