On the face of it, my painting This ship has sailed is part of my visual art practice – but it has its own space somewhere between design, illustration and sketching.
It's of the massive, empty greenhouses in West Ham Park once used to grow plants for City of London events.
I’ve gone to the place and looked at it with a sketchbook, happening on a ship-like scene of furled cloth, draped string and plants chancing their arm in an abandoned deck of membrane. I’ve illustrated on canvas. I’ve grabbed design tools to mask off the ‘ghost’ structure no longer in use for its original purpose. I’ve stitched to add lustre and texture.
Why should my illustration and design clients care about this? Well, in this human, physical process there’s been thought, knowledge, experimentation – and a desire to tell this story, not a generic story. And in that is value.
If you’d like to chat about your project, get in touch.
The Tower Gallery exhibition Liminality is at East Tower, Memorial Community Church, 395 Barking Road, London E13 8AL from 15 May to 7 June, Fridays to Sundays 3-7pm.
