GEC

I have just completed a new oil painting based on the old GEC Factory that was recently demolished in Stafford. This building was part of the landscape for as long as I can remember and it seems strange to now see it gone. The site was large and it took a few weeks to remove the various buildings. I have captured the main part of the factory, partway through demolition and was interested in how various parts of the interior became visible after some of the outer shell was removed. There is something quite sad but also beautiful about the last remaining parts of the structure. It was once a major employer for Stafford but this once busy area has now become very quiet and still.

Inside Out

I have just completed a new acrylic painting based on the derelict Price and Kensington Factory in Middleport. This building was discovered during a day of urban exploration with artist Jemma Gunning. We were intrigued by the structure which lay abandoned and was slowly becoming taken over by nature. I took several reference photographs but it was the view of the battered old sofa that caught my eye. There was something quite peculiar about seeing an indoor item of furniture placed in front of the factory and I wondered how it arrived here. The crumbling walls and exposed interior offered so much to explore with paint and I enjoyed building up the textures.

Open Shows and New Drawing

I have just completed a new ink drawing, ‘Springfield Brewery’, based on an abandoned factory in Wolverhampton. A few years ago I discovered the building as I hunted for subject matter for a derelict building project I was working on. Until now I haven’t responded to my research. I have started to revisit the subject matter as I will be exhibiting with Jemma Gunning later in the year on an abandoned spaces project. Working with ink will complement her printmaking practice.

I have found out today that my painting, ‘Renewal’, has been pre-selected for the Royal Society of British Artists Annual Exhibition 2019. Hopefully it will get past the next round and make it to the show!