Artist Statement
My work explores themes of leisure, happiness and fun, through the lens of nostalgia and hyperreality. Digital 3D modelling, virtual reality and performative installation work allows me to create fully realised surreal environments as both a fantasy yet also a tangible space. The process of constructing 3d virtual environments and setting up a scene creates a space for decompressing and separation of the self from the banality and monotony of daily life. Throughout the pandemic, the ability to digitally construct and access personalised aspects of leisure, which were otherwise off limits, felt freeing.
These concepts are, additionally, heavily influenced by childhood and retirement from an arduous society, and the freedom and happiness that comes with those eras. Children’s cartoons such as ‘Looney Tunes’, and video game environments drive my approach to aesthetics and the light-hearted humour of my work. This is often aided through the use of garish colouring, and a cartoon-esque approach to storytelling. The constant inclusion of a blue sky and green grass has become a variable that I have come to associate with childlike calm and tranquillity which can anchor any work to a level of neutrality and beauty that isn’t always available in real life. The intention behind such work is to create a plastic sense of nostalgic positivity which can make a space that is separated from reality.
Because of this, there is a constant relationship between the mundane and the artificial, the public and the private. Jay Appleton’s ‘Prospect and Refuge’ theory is one which constantly seems to relate to my work. The ability to see without being seen in the context of virtual reality artwork and ‘ideal’ environments is integral and creates a unique, isolated safe space that can never be recreated exactly in real life. The imagery within my work aims to evoke a blissful collective memory of leisure and enjoyment in a controlled environment which is always accessible, especially to those who often feel disconnected from public space.