ARTIST STATEMENT

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The tactile quality and patina of old photographs fascinates me, my current work is a response to photo albums belonging to my family. The albums date from the 1860s to 1900s and give glimpses of colonial life in Kashmir, Singapore and Shanghai as well as Victorian and Edwardian Glasgow. Some of the photographs are intimate and informal family scenes, others are much more formal and staged. 

I am exploring ways to recreate the texture and ageing of these photographs. Techniques used include monotypes, ink painting and oil painting. Frequently I create the imagery by erasing, a reference to the ghostly aspect of the fading photographs, memory, and the passage of time. We develop and embellish narratives around photographs, I am interested in the way albums are created, photographs selected and cropped to perpetuate selected memories whilst discarding others. I feel as if I am mining these albums for small fragments or nuggets which I feel connected to, these are extracted from the context of the album and become the source of my work, taking on a new life. As our experience of photography is increasingly digital, fleeting, and remote, I hope that this this focus on the tangible experience of photo albums may be refreshing and thought provoking.

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I am currently studying for an MA in Fine Art with the OCA (Open College of Arts). I am an experienced art teacher and run art courses for small groups.

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