The current work grew from the use of corrugated card being pressed into oil paint to create texture; I was making paintings on canvas, fairly conventional, semi-abstract works and began pressing various materials including corrugated card into the surface of the paint. At some point it occurred to me that the card was interesting as primary material in itself rather than just being used to create a surface on something else.
I collect this card that is the raw material of my work from local outlets, then cut it and tear it and paint the various pieces. Sometimes I will attempt to remove this fresh paint to reveal parts of the text on the card or I will score and scratch the surface or perhaps sand it down to reveal the corrugations beneath. Texture is important to the work. These various pieces of card are then shuffled around on a workbench to create the finished piece. When I am satisfied with the arrangement they are carefully glued onto plywood and then glazed and framed.
I have further used this interest in the use of discarded materials by drawing into old and broken slates that have lain on rooves for years before being replaced and cast aside. I wash the slates clean from years of soot and grime and etch into the surface with a sharp point.
I have no idea when I begin as to what is going to happen. The material itself dictates what is going to emerge. Colour is kept minimal as an alternative to the high gloss of most modern advertising imagery and also to emphasise the surface and texture of the work and, I hope, to enhance its contemplative feel.
My work is essentially about communicating a certain aesthetic. There are some lines which Robert Hughes wrote about Richard Diebenkorns Ocean Park series of paintings which are pinned up in my studio: -
"One hears neither the chant of surging millions, nor even the chorus of a movement, but one measured voice, quietly and tersely explaining why this light, this colour, this intrusion of a 30 degree angle into a glazed and modulated field might be valuable in the life of the mind and of feeling."
