Where the ‘Ghosts’ came from
They began with a strange moment of recognition; an ailing beech found on a walk seeming to contain something figurative beyond the visible. Once I’d seen this I couldn’t unsee it – pareidolia was at work.
When I first started this series way back in 2012-13 I called them ‘Ghosts’ because they carried memories and echoes of things I couldn’t quite grasp on a conscious level, but sincerely wanted to connect with. For me, these works had a dark energy and a bittersweet mix of emotions behind them. The art was a way of expressing something I couldn’t do any other way and it’s quite difficult to write about even now. Their mystery was always appealing to both myself and the collectors who ultimately chose them.
I’m honoured to announce that I have been commissioned by Marchmont House to create a triptych of charcoal drawings for their collection. I’ll be on residency there in the Old Squash Court for the first two weeks of June, where I’ll begin working on some new pieces in my ‘Ghosts’ series, based on Marchmont trees.