The One With The Face

Mixed mediums - acrylic, oil, aerosol, sand, clay, wire, papier mache and minerals on board. 1220mm x 606mm

This piece has gone through a few phases before completion, it was almost like creating a piece in Photoshop, building up layers to achieve the final result. The face is built from chicken wire, papier mache and sand. The rest of the image is created using sand, salt and pva which is then painted and sprayed.

Seen in the flesh it is very textural, have a look at these images for a better idea of the detail.




It is partially a tribute to 'The Scream' by Edvard Munch.

In a page in his diary headed Nice 22.01.1892, Munch described his inspiration for the image thus:

“ I was walking along a path with two friends — the sun was setting — suddenly the sky turned blood red — I paused, feeling exhausted, and leaned on the fence — there was blood and tongues of fire above the blue-black fjord and the city — my friends walked on, and I stood there trembling with anxiety — and I sensed an infinite scream passing through nature. ”

Although my piece has probably more an expression of bewildered surprise rather than a scream i feel the whole image gives off the impression of a landscape in pain. The bottom section radiates with reds and gold, hard to see in the photo, it is reminiscent of a volcanic landscape flowing with fire and heat, admittedly more like the start of the world but really an attempt to predict what might be if we don't get our abuse of the planet under control. The face which i suppose represents us all has one eye closed signifying our understanding of the problem mixed with a lack of actual effort to change our ways and halt the demise of our world.