Tokyo Series
My practice aims to capture a moment of atmospheric truth. Inspired by the aesthetic sensibilities of The 19th century and with an expressive approach to mark making I depict what I see and I how I feel about the subject. My impression of the subject comes from a deep respect for it and a reluctance to conform to its traditional, customary and sometimes iconic image. My gestural, almost free association towards my painting allows me capture the essence of the subject.
Tokyo is a vast concrete sea it's density is almost unnatural and at times it can be suffocating, but Tokyo is addictive, it's an entity, alive and breathing with culture and civilization. However, at times nature eclipses the megatropolis and tames the beast, its this battle I love and try to attain within my art.
The Blue Vision Series
These works were painted in response to Yamanashi, Japan. Mount Fuji is a God, its water and fertile land give life to its surrounding area. It is also an active volcano, and can erupt at any moment. Fuji San is both celebrated and revered, it represents nature in all its glory, its face is constantly changing and one moment is never the same as the last. This eternal shift in color, and the movement of light and shadow enhanced its symbolism and created a unique atmosphere. Traditionally Mount Fuji is painted as a clear, still, and whole entity. But for me its beauty lies in its transient revelation and concealment.
「The Blue Vision」は、日本の山梨県の風景を描いた連作です。富士山は、人々に肥沃な土地と水を与える神でありながら、常に噴火の危険を孕んだ活火山でもあります。敬愛されると同時に畏れられる富士という山は、恵みと脅威といった自然が持つ要素を象徴するものであり、さらに、美と自然がいつもはかないものであるように、富士は時の移り変わりとともに、その表情を刻々と変化させ、二度同じ姿を見せることがありません。富士をとりまく、永遠に続いていく色彩の変化、光と影の動きが、富士の象徴性を高め、独特の雰囲気をつくりだしていると、わたしは感じました。
山の全体を、はっきりと、静止した時のなかに描くのが伝統的な富士の描き方ですが、わたしが感じた富士の美は、見えたと思うとすぐにその姿を隠してしまう、そのはかなさのなかにありました。
Private commissions / Miscellaneous