Artists Statement

"The only journey is the one within"  Rainer Maria Rilke 

"Who looks outside, dreams; who looks inside, awakes" Carl Jung

My interest lies in the power to evoke disquieting and elusive moments with  subtle nuances of light that the richness of  the mezzotint can uncover. Although I specialise in the mezzotint print technique I continue to paint and sculpt  defining objects as they are brought out of darkness, just as a thought would emerge from ones memory. I am an explorer of twilight zones and ambiguous spaces. Much of my recent work explores ambivalence - suspended - the struggle with  insight  and doubt , hesitation  and commitment.  Moments of isolation and dislocation, stillness and silence  where introspection and alienation are consciously engaged and interrogated. People waiting  in darkness caught between expectation and anxiety is the most haunting imagery. My source of inspiration comes from memory and subconscious which is rearticulated into my own visual language . It stretches my investigation of ideas  into solitude, symbolism of thought and the human condition. I like to suggest  not prescribe -  what is missing in the shadows and is suggested  provides the greatest potential for me. The mezzotint is known as “ maniere noire”  ( black method) it demands patience ,consequence, and precision. It is an extremely labour and   time consuming  process; an  an intensely intimate one and profoundly considered - for this reason  there are only a relatively small number of artists who practice this print technique worldwide today. The  technique is particularly meditative. It is about disappearing into the overall experience of the work and being totally absorbed in the process  .The metal plate – working with the materials to a great extent is what the image is about. It  offers resistance to my will and forces me to think and rethink my way to solutions.   

To maintain the highest standards I personally perform all the creative and technical aspects of my work- without the use of an apprentice or assistant. I have invented and designed my own roulette that creates a rare stippled pattern  that can not be achieved with any other tool currently on the market.