Swings and Roundabouts, 2019. Oil on board.
The day to day forms of social control that we encounter, shape the way we interact with each other and the world around us. From traffic lights and street signs, to the clothes we wear, the small gentle reminders of how to conform and act, keep us safe while also causing us to mindlessly respond to social cues. In this artwork, I hope to explore the link between these external forms of social control and the internal sanctions we place upon ourselves. The cacti are used to represent the defence mechanisms or ‘walls’ that we build to shield ourselves from the onslaught of information that confronts us in every waking hour. Taking losses and gaining wins, figure stares blankly, perhaps into the future or perhaps at nothing at all, as he rides life’s swings and roundabouts.
Fire, 2019. Oil on board. 30 x 30cm.
Trash, 2019. Oil on board. 30 x 30cm
This work is part of an exploration into the theme of social control. Here the skip bins represent an attempt at order; a containment of waste, however this representation of order and social control has been vandalised with the graffiti acting as a symbol of chaos. The dichotomy of order and chaos, the push and pull.