It’s been a time of personal emotional upheaval, largely triggered by the world we live in. I think it’s fair to say most creative people, most thinking people, are open-minded and forward-thinking. The times we’re living in are anything but. It’s hard to be creative, create new work, good work, of any kind when everything around us is uncertain and frightening.
More and more I rely on painting as therapy. It may be the ONLY time I’m truly relaxed and out of my head. I’ve been working in a totally different form and that’s been incredibly challenging – and rewarding. I’m the least abstract person on the planet, but I’m forcing myself to relate to those kinds of images and ideas. There’s always a point when I’m working on something new that I can hear my teenage self asking my parents why I had to learn geometry – when would I ever use it?! I know the answer to that. NOW. Abstract art is nothing if not geometric.I’m constantly trying to see/find/understand that. Although it’s what I’m focusing on now, it’s hard for me to believe it will be anything more than a phase. But who the hell knows. Ten years ago if someone told me I’d be painting, I would’ve asked for some of what they’d be smoking.