Up with the Larks

I create miniature water colours inspired by the skies I see everyday and landscapes stored within a lifetime of memories. 

My aim is to create a dialogue between my work and viewer that triggers memories and feelings that are buried deep within the subconscious and in the same way as looking at a photograph they unearth forgotten memories; a shared glimpse into the past.

As a child we stored many of our photos as slides and my recollections of holding up those small squares to the light and discovering the secrets hidden withIn those tiny pieces of magic, compel me to emulate the experience and share the beauty and simplicity of the landscape.

My paintings demand close viewing; they manipulate the viewer by bringing them to within a few centimetres of the painting and by allowing the image into their personal space, it creates an intimate encounter and forges a relationship. 

 This slows time and holds the viewers attention and intensifies the gaze. These tiny abstract paintings appeal to people's curiosity and they are drawn in to investigate. The proximity of the image excludes all else and the viewer is pulled into the image.
 

 The paper I use to paint on is thick, creamy and tactile. Each piece is torn; the edges unique. The paintings are framed in such a way to make the painting appear to be floating within the frame. The lack of a boundary, the ripped edge, allows the viewers mind to wander, to recall their own memories; perhaps from their own childhood, a glimpse from a train window, a mind photo; triggering a feeling of recognition, of déjà vu, a shared memory.

 Something known but mysterious and paradoxically familiar
 
 A chance encounter
 
 The empty space of the boundary
 
 Ephemeral

 Intimate
 
 Poignant