Artist's Statement

I am a fine artist working & living in Sherwood Forest, England. I make abstract work inspired by the natural environment specialising in contemporary drawing, photography and innovative media processes. I exhibit nationally and share my inspirations and skills through participatory workshops based at Thoresby Park.

I have over 20 years experience in arts and cultural development, partnering with national and regional arts organisations.

"My practice is about connection. I make work that invites affinity by

evoking sensorial memories and emotions that the viewer may not

previously have considered significant.

At the heart of my practice is curiosity and experimentation. I want to find

how the ‘essence’ of sensory experiences can be identified, distilled and

recreated? I strive to

“discover the purest forms which will exactly invoke [my own] sensation”.

Hepworth

I am interested in how we are affected by our physical and social environment, and the processes within that transaction. For example:

Why are we captivated by some experiences of the natural environment so profoundly?

How does what we see evoke non-visual memory?

What differences do our cultural and experiential ‘lenses’ bring to that process?

Where are the synergies and conflicts in our relationship with the natural environment?

My work begins and ends with drawing and I'm constantly pushing the boundaries of what drawing can be and what it can be made from. Testing how edited it can be and still connect to the viewer and expanding it into new forms."

the process...

photograph: Neil Pledger

...is shaped by experiences. Inspired by early years playing in the woods and exploring the dramatic Peak District, trees and woodland in particular have always been my solace and my muse. Studying the forms within landscapes and botanical structures provides me with enough ideas for a hundred lifetimes.

The work always starts with photography and drawings made on location. These are then developed in the studio and blended with media experiments until the way forward 'feels' right for the sensation I want to evoke.

At the very least I want you to be curious too....