In this work, I am interested in working with light, colour and structure to investigate what I think of as “beauty fused with terror”: the sublime. The dense, atmospheric glow seems suggestive of inviting, light-filled space, while also hinting at an unwelcoming toxicity. The dark, shadowed forest spaces, sharp structural forms and scabby, awkward paint adds a slightly menacing tone to this pastoral, shifting the narrative towards the dystopic. It is this combination of familiar and dreadful that evokes the sublime; the natural becoming unnatural.

Unlike the traditional pastoral, the figure is rarely glimpsed. In these works, the human presence is suggested by that which is left behind - treeforts and tents, ladders and shovels. Elements of
the pastoral are evoked–especially the hint of an Arcadian harmony between the suggested figure and nature–however it is hard to place with certainty the specific type of landscape, nor the activity of its inhabitants. Perhaps we are viewing a campsite (park), a children’s tree fort (backyard) or an isolated survivalist home (wilderness).
@ Leigh Bridges 2007