Artist Statement
Sometimes playful but at the same time deadly serious, I aim to inspire people to think and act differently by focusing on issues in an unusual and engaging way and via projects that are seriously researched but 'off the wall' in their execution. Often humorous - even surreal - in tone, my work is deliberately accessible with a strong aesthetic. Initial impressions are often visually stunning (huge installations or bold displays of multiple items) - but the sting is in the detail... it shocks while it entertains.
I transform modest materials (rubbish, earth and air) into something that is valued but which at the same time provokes, paradoxically commenting on consumerism through the subversion of consumerism's tools.Often I make 'keepsakes' (souvenirs, matchboxes, seed packets) - I like the idea of providing a visual reminder and a talking point to take away.
Process (for example, walking and collection) are vital elements of my practice - as is my website which both documents and is the work.
I see my work as a catalyst. I do not want my audience to be bowled over by my craftsmanship or by the desire to own an object, but, rather, to be blown away by what it makes them think or do. I want to make waves - to create an unforgettable message and to really inspire change.
CV & Education
Qualifications and training
2007 - Body Politic (art, ecology & social justice), Birkbeck College, London
2006 - BA Hons Visual Studies 1st Class, Norwich School of Art & Design, Norwich
Solo exhibitions
2012 - Beached, Jaywick Martello Tower, Jaywick, Essex
2012 - Hutliving Here and There, Bridport Arts centre, Bridport, Dorset
2011 - Lines of Exchange, Snape Maltings, Suffolk
2010 - Cast Away on Orford Ness, National Trust, Orford Ness, Suffolk
2009 - Earth Sea and Air, Craftco Gallery, Southwold
2009 - Found Out, Babylon Gallery, Ely
2009 - Future Beach, Earth Summit, Isles of Scilly
2009 - Life Savings, The Cut, Halesworth
2009 - Your Ocean, Time and Tide Museum, Great Yarmouth
2008 - Plastic Fantastic?, RISC, Reading
2008 - Walking to save some sea, Landguard Fort, Felixstowe
2007 - Walking to save some sea, Babylon Gallery, Ely
Group exhibitions
2012 - Skeleton Sea, Batán de Villava y Molino San Andrés, Pamplona, Spain
2012 - Skeleton Sea, Lisbon Oceanario, Lisbon, Portugal
2011 - Art and Coastal Change, Aldeburgh, Suffolk
2011 - Skeleton Sea, Torre Madriaga Biodoversity Centre, Mundaka, Spain
2009 - 15 Artists, 15 Days, firstsite, Colchester
2009 - BASH Sustainable Art Awards , BASH Studios, London
2009 - Blue Sky, Ruskin Gallery, Cambridge
2009 - Felixstroll Path Weekend, South beach, Felixstowe
2009 - Flat Art from East Anglia , The Big Shed, Stanny House Farm, Iken
2007 - Platform 7, Bury St Edmunds Art Gallery, Suffolk
Artist talks
2010 - The Art of Litter, documentary, Radio 4
2008 - Walking to save some sea, Marine Conservation Society Conference, Portsmouth
Residencies
2009 - Brisons Veor, Cape Cornwall, Cornwall
Projects
2011 - A Year at the Edge, Thorpeness, Suffolk
2011 - Development of landingstage.net website for Suffolk artists/writers engaging with coastal and climate change, Alde and Ore Coast and Estuary, Suffolk
2010 - Programme of artist residencies (ongoing), Sudbourne, Suffolk
Competitions, prizes and awards
2009 - Runnner-up BASH Sustainable Art Awards, BASH studios, London
2007 - Babylon Bursary for emerging artist, Babylon Gallery, Ely
2007 - Platform 7 bursary, Bury St Edmunds Art Gallery, Suffolk
2006 - Richardson-Brown Travel prize, Norwich School of Art & Design, Norwich