In my work, abstraction and figuration makes playful accord. Here the flower motif exists as a grounding component, and abstraction exists as its aftermath. By rendering these images as paintings I am exploring the possibilities of the flower as an icon, freeing it from its familiar contexts to create works that use but go beyond the recognisable. Through energetic arrays of sweeping and excessive application of vivid colour, I aim to evoke more than literal representation. The distinction between the real, the decorative, and the imaginative become blurred, and the motif becomes the key to articulating emotion. I allow it to transform into an extension of my identity: a young woman flourishing into adulthood.

The flower pays homage to my farming heritage, where my affinity with nature materialises in an array of romantic colours and gestures. My sources come from days spent in antique shops with my mother where we would search for novelty objects decorated with floral imagery. Floral displays within floral vases, here the perishable flower turns permanent, fixed in a timeless entity. My work aims to explore the same idea, using oils to mimic life, preserving its beauty. I paint to flirt with death.

The smaller works exist as the autonomous, confessional component of the collection. Titled ‘Covering Her Eyes’, the painting’s flesh-like pinks occupy the space, whilst fragments of the body penetrate into the surrounding canvases. There is an underlying sensual thread that runs through my work, aiming to seek a humane understanding of the fragility of life.