WAR / KING / CLASS Painting

Steve Burden’s work investigates ancestry and heritage. Born in a Deptford council flat and going on to complete a degree at Goldsmiths, Burden has butted against the inherent classicism of art higher education. His most recent body of work is a response to researching his DNA and finding a link to 11th century Norman aristocracy, prompting him to think about land ownership and the birth of the class system. His work shows the thin veil between class divides, how a few centuries can move a family from castle to council estate. The work blurs the line between figuration and abstraction, the energy of application noticeable in Burden’s fluid, lyrical marks. This blending of materials mirrors his breaking of boundaries in a socially constructed hierarchy. In Burden’s work, we see a questioning of the status quo, handled with defiance and playfulness in equal measure.