Galleries

The Desire Realm is one of the three realms (or worlds) in traditional Buddhist cosmology into which a being within the cycle of death and rebirth can be born. The other two are the form realm and the formless realm. The desire realm, according to Indo-Tibetan Mahayana Buddhism, is divided into six domains (which can also be translated realms). These are sometimes also called the six paths of suffering, among other names. They are the Deva Realm, the Asura realm, the Human realm, the Animal realm, the Preta realm and the Naraka Realm.Although each of the pieces in this series of images is named after one of the Desire Realms in Buddhism, they do not relate to Buddhism on a conceptual level. Rather, the names simply served as an initial inspiration for the images.

The AC3: The Timekeeper group exhibition was the third in a series of exhibitions held in the Olivier Cornet Gallery. The AC stands for Alchemist’s Chamber. The first show in the series involved artists recycling second-hand objects and turning them into works of art, akin to the legends of alchemists turning base metals into gold. The second exhibition, AC2, focused on works containing gold or gold leaf (or gold acrylic paint, as in the case of my submission to the show).AC3: The Timekeeper focused on the theme of time. As such, the works featured in this gallery focus on the passage of time in various different ways, though primarily in the guise of decay, entropy and aging. Fittingly, included in this gallery are images of the work in progress, allowing the viewer to see the development of the image and also providing an insight into how I create my works on card.

Sketching is an important part of my practice as an artist. It helps me to develop ideas, ideas which are sometimes incorporated into later works, but also ideas which expand the world from which my pictures are drawn. They allow a greater freedom of expression than more finished pieces; you can be more playful, more experimental, than is often possible when executing a larger drawing. To be honest, sketching is for me also the most enjoyable of the methods I use to create my work, and one I wish I had more time for.Some of the pieces below are stand-alone, and were not drawn in reference to any other project. They introduce new characters and technologies, which may or may not be expanded upon in later iterations. Others are dedicated preparation pieces for future projects, developmental work that will be incorporated in more finished pieces at a later date.All of the sketches below are drawn on paper with ballpoint pen.

Some time ago, Olivier Cornet, the owner of the Olivier Cornet Gallery, who I had been working with for a number of years after I graduated, suggested that I, along with other artists in the gallery, try making a few pieces in a 12x12cm format. That is roughly the size of the average CD cover.I really liked the idea, as I love working small-scale. It also gave me a chance to produce work that would be more affordable to those on a limited budget, as well as more manageable for those who had limited space to display artwork in their homes. In addition, it gave me the opportunity to try out some new ideas which I felt would work better on a smaller scale, and which I knew I wouldn’t have the opportunity to develop on a larger scale.The pieces below are primarily divided into four categories: persons, technology, corporations and geography (or locations). A few pictures, however, were private commissions and therefore do not conform to this rule. All of the pieces were drawn on heavy card with pen and marker.

“One's outlook on life and its purposes may greatly modify one's attitude toward goods in which fashion is prominent. At the present time, not a few people in western nations have departed from old-time standards of religion and philosophy, and having failed to develop forceful views to take their places, hold to something that may be called, for want of a better name, a philosophy of futility... This lack of purpose in life has an effect on consumption similar to that of having a narrow life interest, that is, in concentrating human attention on the more superficial things that comprise much of fashionable consumption.” Economics of Fashion (1928).Columbia University marketing professor Paul Nystrom.

This album contains images of a commission I was working on for some time. The premise of the commission was to create an image based on Picasso's famous painting 'Guernica'.The full title of the piece is "Still from the security footage of the Urban Warrior Robotic Exoskeleton (Guerrero Urbano Exoesqueleto Robótico) Project at the New Institute of Advanced Science (Nuevo Instituto de Ciencias Avanzadas)."Have fun trying to pick out all the details and comparing it to the original.

The world that is featured in my artworks had its naissance in my third year in college. Its first and primary inspiration was the Hayao Miyazaki film (and manga) Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind, a story of a world 1000 years from now where mankind has so badly polluted the planet that it produces a toxic jungle which makes the air unbreathable save with the aid of a gas-mask. Since its birth the world I began building has grown well beyond its original inspiration. It has incorporated numerous influences, expanded its scope, and has become thoroughly unwieldy and badly in need of a continuity supervisor.For the most part this world exists within the confines of my mind. It is peopled with characters, nations, corporations and creatures, many of which have never been put to paper (or card, or MDF). My artworks give an ever expanding glimpse into this world, allowing each viewer to build their own picture.Each of the artworks below form part of that picture. They are not connected by a specific theme or format, and may have featured in one or more exhibitions. Some were created for specific exhibitions, while others were ideas that I simply felt I needed to put down in one medium or another. Some may one day evolve into projects or series of their own. For now, they are stand-alone artworks…