These are paintings where I give vent to movement and feelings. I let the paintings form themselves, and they do.
Inspired by walking and cycling in Malvern, the vibrancy of countryside colours and a sky disturbed by rising pressures as the wind blows over the hills.
A tranquil picture, experimenting with gravitational pulls on the oils, reminiscent of a watery landscape in the jungle. Oil on canvas, using cold wax and solvents.
This painting is inspired by Sarah Dorsin, a small graffiti of whom I discovered in Berlin. She joined a group of PKK Kurd freedom fighters who were hounded down and killed after they downed a Turkish military helicopter. Oil on canvas.
A painting inspired by the removal of black teenage girl from class, on suspicion of having drugs but she was innocent, strip-searched by police and without informing her parents. She was menstruating, removed her sanitary towel and told her to replace the used item after the search. Complete humiliation of this child, affecting her deeply. We live in this country. The picture is supposed to be disturbing. Oil on canvas.
Freeform with Ukraine in mind, oil on canvas with palette knife and various oils.
War in the suburbs. It could be Aleppo but I was thinking of Ukraine. Buildings destroyed, people as shadows of themselves amidst the destruction. Oil on canvas, palette knife and brush over several layers.
This is one of several pieces of graffiti art and tags beside a river in Berlin, close to where my daughter lives. I wanted to bring it to life in oils and embed it in my memory.
John Simnett 