History Painting's statement
My current practice considers the spectacle and human drama of politics, power and conflict.
In my current paintings, I have drawn on and referenced contemporary media as well as historical and religious genres in my work to find visual and conceptual expressions to explore these themes.
I use imagery found in dramatic candid photographs and videos from online. These images often depict political fights and stories from within parliamentary proceedings. In this series of oil paintings, I then reposition these contemporary figures and events within a broader discourse of history painting. I am particularly interested in the settings, architectural and symbolic, and how they can merge with the strategies used in biblical and iconographic paintings of the past.
In this body of work, I envision a new narrative where there is amalgam of times and characters. The symbolism, architecture and clothing shifts, but tropes, events and tableau reoccur.