This historical landscape of the Catalan capital
Barcelona is dominated by one of its greatest sons, Antoni Gaudí, the architect
whose magnum opus, the Sagrada Familia cathedral, is still unfinished. He and
the building form the focal point of the painting, which also shows the
colourful decoration used in Gaudí’s Güell Park and inside the cathedral. Barcelona’s
older history is hinted at in the ruins of the Roman pillars of Augustus, in
the image of the city’s medieval founder, Sunifred I, in its atmospheric Gothic
quarter and in the image of the celebrated medieval Jewish mathematician
Abraham bar Hiyya. Contemporary Barcelona’s close association with football
appears in the colourful shield of its main club. A palette of warm yellows and
oranges contrasted with cool blues and violets give a sense of the city’s
vitality and exuberance.
Oil and mixed media
on board
My paintings are not conventional landscapes, as
they trace the history of Spanish towns, cities and historical sites in their
landscape from earliest times to the present, using techniques of medieval
narrative painting as well as contemporary abstraction. The historical memory
of each place is evoked by symbols or images of its evolution through time,
allowing the viewer to piece together its history as a visual narrative. That
memory of the past is highly varied, yet also has an underlying unity created
by the successive generations of Christian, Muslim and Jewish peoples who
inhabited the Spanish Peninsula and who have given it a unique yet ambiguous
identity.
The abstracted, expressive landscapes are painted in
oil and mixed media, including acrylic metallic spray paint, one of my
favourite mediums, collaged photos and old documents, and materials which evoke
the substance and texture of each place.
