Hand painted Collagraph monoprint. This is a Collagraph which is a printmaking process in which various materials are applied to a ‘plate’ a rigid surface such as (in this case) a gessoed panel. I paint directly on my print plates with carborundum grits, I score and gouge out areas then sand back; I apply varnish, enamel paint, textured pastes and collage; it is a prolonged process of concealment and discovery. The plate was hand inked and painted before printing onto paper through a heavy pressInspired by the celebrity world, costume drama, a touch of Alexander McQueen and the words of the American Poet – Carolyn Kizer Images from fashion magazines combined with studies of ancient statues displayed in museums have been a great source of reference material for this work. I constructed this image out of carborundum and acrylic pastes and ‘dressed’ her in a costume that was built up from a combination of net curtains and wallpaper impressions – everyday ordinary patterns made extraordinary, exotic and other worldly.Her costume decorates, conceals, disguises and protects her – like a mask“Our masks, always in peril of smearing or cracking,In need of continuous check in the mirror or silverware,Keep us in thrall to ourselves, concerned with our surfaces”Carolyn Kizer

111 x 85cm