Artist statement:

I am a Scottish artist from Edinburgh and a First-Cass honours graduate from the Edinburgh college of Art at the University of Edinburgh. 

My working methods combine historic aesthetic with contemporary materiality to document and preserve the period in which we are living. Through keeping up to date with global news, I use objects to translate these messages into scenes that visually symbolise specific current affairs that I believe are important to address. Although I create scenes that incorporate contemporary materials and messages, I use traditional working methods such as the use of candlelight and oil paints to pay homage to historic artists. I use candles to light my scenes and photograph the objects, this allows me to further edit the tonal value and increase the theatricality of the reference image. Through referencing the religious paintings of Caravaggio, I use chiaroscuro and symbolism in my work to highlight the almost religious emphasis that we place on objects today.

 I paint objects on a large scale with the objects often filling the canvas to create a sense of uncertainty. This use of scale changes the context of the work and the relationship between the object and the viewer. 

My work implores the audience to see beyond the boundary of objectification into a wider symbolic understanding, to see objects for what they have the potential to represent, beyond what they are. By twisting stereotypes, I challenge spectators to see objects in a different light- a gold star balloon symbolising depression, a child’s toy symbolising obesity.