War on Terror Part 2

'Tanguy Underpass' (14/4/2009) Dimensions 20 x 15 x 2.5 cm. Oil on patenated and incised copper.

'Kennel Club' (22/4/2009) Dimensions 20 x 15 x 2.5 cm. Oil, gouache and acrylic on patenated copper.

'Double Yellow' (March 2009) Dimensions 20 x 15 x 2.5 cm. Oil, gouache on paper and patenated copper.

'Terror' (28/4/2009) Dimensions 20 x 15 x 2.5 cm. Oil and acrylic on patenated copper.

All 8 of these paintings are part of my degree show. My works aim to convey the idea that the threat of terrorist attack, however vague or unsubstantiated is often used as an excuse to remove the liberty of a minority of people, and how this inevitably leads to it being used on the majority of people. By juxtaposing large, almost overwhelming paintings of ambiguous architectural spaces with titles such as ‘The Tube’ which suggest a sense of danger, against much smaller images suggesting the subtle everyday effects of the ‘War on Terror’ as well as its darker heart, the works try to convey the underlying issues which I want the viewer to think about. In these paintings I also wanted to look at modernist, futurist, brutalist even corporatist architecture.

These are all examples of movements promising to change society for the better which to greater or lesser extent failed.