private view - a collection of self portraits
Most of my work would appear to include self portraits. In many of the pictures, the portraits are mainly symbolic and though they appear to resemble myself have in fact nothing to do with me. An artist tends to use the design of their own face because they know it so well and have little access to other models. Painting from the model is a very traditional occupation and the results can often be boringly academic. I am more interested in expressing what is behind the mask: the turmoil, fears, emotions and irrational thoughts that come and go through the subconscious.
The portrait represented here is an impression of myself as half child, half adult. It is against a backdrop of Footdee, the village where I live at the mouth of Aberdeen Harbour. I am almost surrounded by water which is on three sides and I like it best during winter storms when the sea is dark grey and the sky is oppressively heavy and overcast. The seagull, pilot house, fish, cat and harbour sign crop up regularly in my work as emblems. They are very much part of my everyday existence and can be sinister or friendly.