ELW Design Art

My style really took form when I was back at college. I was set a project on Identity and it really got me thinking about how we judge people at face value. Even if the person underneath is completely different we have already prejudged, that was when I found an American artist called Chuck Close. He really changed the way I looked at faces and the way I painted them. He made me realise that even a painting can give you the different layers that there are in people. My work is a lot more boldly coloured but the principle is the same that I want people to look past the exterior and look deeper. Painting isn't just a hobby or interest for me, it is the way I deal with all the ups and downs that life throws you. It is my inner sanctuary. I wish more than anything to display my work so people can see it and if it ever becomes possible create art full time. It gives me such a joy to watch peoples faces when they look at my work.

My theme is portraits, though I work from photos that I take. I take lots of photos to try and capture the actual person not the person posing because they know the camera is there. I want them to be natural and all my friends have now got used to my camera always being out and don't pose as much any more. The colours I chose depends on the individual persons identity and what they were doing at the time the photo was taken. I want the colours to reflect there inner personality. Though I love painting I have been experimenting using lego blocks and they are such a great way to give the image a hidden depth. Though this does limit the colours I can use to create the image and they can be quite costly and difficult to find. Hence a lot of my work is create using acrylic paint this has its bonuses as it is easier to change a colour if I don't feel it is working.

The most recent piece of work I am working on is a piece I have found very enjoyable as it has a real free feeling about it. I am not sure whether this is because it has captured more of my friends body language and isn't quite so focused on the facial expressions. The photo that I worked from looks like she hasn't got a care in the world, I just hope I have managed to capture this. I just want my pieces to challenge peoples way of looking at things and sometimes I even manage to challenge my own perception of people just by seeing them in a different way.