Creating interactions

The materials I use and my process all lead me towards creating conversations about what my work represents; and what those viewing my work see. Each interaction creates an input that deepens my understanding and therefore how I can make new work that does the same for others. Each person brings with them a unique experience and sense of place; each has the potential to imagine something where in reality it doesn’t exist. By working in this way, I want someone viewing my work to feel something, whether physically or emotionally, beyond the every day and therefore expanding their sense of wonder.

I'm driven by a need to understand human perception and how the senses and our brains operate, trying to give meaning to everything. That this can be subverted has intrigued me since I first saw an optical illusion. This need to understand is heightened by being colour blind and sometimes sensing different views in strange ways. One of my primary inspirations is the work of Bridget Riley, who can create motion and oscillation out of static colour works, resulting personally in an emotional response.

For my practice, I feel the most excitement when someone first sees a work, as they try to rationalise what they are seeing and how it relates to them. The different ways people interact is a constant fascination, and I want to understand what they see and how it connects or separates our differing views.

In some respects, I can provide pointers with my use of colour, form or complexity that create a space where every feeling and opinion is valid. The interactions range from the momentary to much more complex. The simple 'I like it' to the more spiritual or technical. I have been fortunate to interact with people from all walks of life, and it's when I get the chance to discuss that I feel the I get both feedback and inspiration to push forward, taking with me new perceptions and views.

I'm often challenged by moments where people have clear views on what they have 'seen' and it doesn't match my idea of what the piece represents. This fascinates me as it gives me clues on how perception operates

One of my most profound interactions was with an installation of dishes displayed in a window with the light flowing through. A lady from the local church had come to see it and had been viewing it for more than twenty minutes when I approached her to check that she was okay. She said that it was like losing oneself in a stained glass window. This spiritual reaction challenged me to look at my work from different perspectives.

My desire is to understand these myriad views and to create abstract work that has this power.