‘Forest Fears’ (2000)
60x40” Black & white photographs mounted onto MDF
Vol. I ‘Storm Damage’ (4 in series)
Vol.II ‘Babe in the Wood (8 in series)

‘Forest Fears’ comprises of two separate ‘volumes’, which draw upon the artist’s experience of fear, pain and recovery from a kidney operation and aims to capture these emotions through the metaphorical and cultural symbolism of nature and fairy stories.

Volume I, 'Storm Damage' is concerned with the issue of time in terms of growth and ageing; leading us deep into a dark foreboding forest where decay and transformation take place. The pairing of the naked, scarred body against the scarred, knotted ‘insides’ of the tree suggests that both body and environment are fragile entities, susceptible to pain. However, the work is not without hope, as nothing here is truly dead, the body glowing in the light is very much alive, as are the roots and the bark.

The large scale nature of the works, allows immersion, enabling the viewer to feel as though they could step into a brief fragment of this unfolding narrative, intruding upon a scene and observing the actions of a solitary subject who appears unaware and self-absorbed.

Selected Exhibition History: