"Soul Problem" Painting

My paintings often come from less loved UK scenery, especially of the urban, generic and run-down variety. I tend, with odd exceptions, to avoid more popular attractions, preferring a view to match my mood or, increasingly, what seems like the darkness of today's world. Through present-day surroundings and the people in them, who are sometimes the main subject, much of the work aims amongst other things to reflect our age of existential threats.

Helped by my photography, I usually paint more loosely than a photorealist would, leaving some feeling on the surface. I am more concerned with atmosphere, colour and socially relevant content than with concept or form. Aesthetically speaking, my main message would be that beauty is wider than generally accepted - arguably universal - and not confined to prettiness, elegant shapes or particular types of subject. I look to combine what for me is the visual appeal of my favoured locations with a sense of contemporary malaise.

While still pursuing my usual themes, some years back during Covid I got sidetracked somewhat by an intentionally morbid home horror project. The shots used were taken in my then back garden which had grown to look quite eerily abandoned, as if society had come to an end. The final piece of the series is called Nasty, Brutish, And Short.