Window One

Paint, crayon, printed acetate, mdf and tape on board 1250mm x 1250mm

I prime a surface with white house paint, and whilst doing this I am marking out areas which will be compositionally active. Then I mix a colour that looks like it might come from something real, browns, greys. After that, I mix a colour that talks to the first one. I go through a process of accumulating different jars of dirty water which each have their own unique colour and odour, and I use this like a sourdough culture - ancestral flavours and all that. I tend to make highly gestural marks first because at this point I’m not too attached to the picture so I dont mind making chaotic marks because theres nothing to ruin. Also, because it’s easier to make decisions in response to shapes which have unfolded by themselves. I try to harness the materiality of whatever I’m using like viscosity, porousness, abrasion, transparency - but also the materiality of the body which I use to perform the gestures which are recorded in the work. How does the elbow bend, how does the wrist? Sometimes I stand with my back to the painting and work through a mirror. Sometimes I hold a brush against the surface and jump up and down.