Raincheck

I love collage art essentially because I enjoy the process. I am less preoccupied with the end result. I am drawn to the surreal and unsettling and try to inject that into my work where possible, always seeking out the unexpected connections between humor and tragedy. Ultimately it’s the way in which collage art challenges traditional notions of aesthetics, which I find most appealing.

My aim is to transport the observer to a time and place of their own choosing. By hiding the faces I disrupt the observers gaze. I remove any distraction and invite the observer to slow down and join the dots in order to seek out the hidden. I guess the real power of the final composition is what can’t be seen. At this point the observer holds all the power and the artist none!

Although my mental approach is analogue, my physical techniques are digital. The most significant challenge for me is giving each artwork the slight imperfections of hand and the general look and feel of being made entirely from traditional analogue practices. To achieve this, I do not use any sophisticated software such as Photoshop or Illustrator. Instead, my tools of choice are extremely basic and closely mimic analogue techniques. It’s like working with your hands in the traditional sense. My process begins by finding the trigger for each piece. This is usually a single image that really catches my eye, grabs me by the throat, and triggers the all-important starting point. Remixing the old with the new to create new truths, I organize and reorganize until it feels right.