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My fine art practice and research inhabit a realm where storytelling (narrative) and fine art meet.

 

I often explore the human condition through the concept of “ordinary heroes”, drawing on intimate narratives that form and fashion cultures – both my late parents’ (second and third generation British migrants to Aotearoa New Zealand), and those cultures with which I am familiar, from my years spent in the UK, Europe and Central Asia. The tales of ordinary heroism that I explore hold up a mirror to challenges occurring more widely in society. I seek to acknowledge the life stories of key players in these narratives, honouring them while encouraging audiences to reflect on potential opportunities to show up as ordinary heroes themselves.

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Sonnet 116 is a body of work that invites curiosity and encourages reflection upon values and behaviours such as courage, presence, resilience, empathy and compassion. The intimate, awkward or emotionally vulnerable artworks are rooted in my late parents’ response to my father’s late onset blindness and Alzheimer’s. Shakespeare's Sonnet 116 was the plumbline that governed their life together, and gave them strength.

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This work is an invitation to reflect on the nature of true heroism and influence, based on ideas of presence, authenticity and resilience at the individual and corporate level. 

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This series was created in direct conversation with its partner series of ceramic pieces,Your Words in my Ear.