11/10/2023
Been a while since I posted due to an extremely challenging year with one of my sons being very ill. I know he won’t want me to draw attention to him or his illness, so I’ll be discreet and simply say, it’s been a really tough but incredible experience watching one defiant brave young guy, who through sheer strength of character & oodles of dark humour over many months, pull through this. He’s now healing nicely. Apologies for a little limelight B! xlove&respectx
Heartfelt thanks to all you others in the wings during this, an outstanding medical team in Montpellier, a supportive family and of course friends.
Studio now back in business and whilst cleaning today, found this little insect wing (swipe to 3rd image) on studio floor today.
Last time I came across one was in 2008, when my son Jules presented me with a similar wing between his two index fingers. He'd found it on the doorstep as we were watching Obama’s 1st win on TV early that morning which I’d photographed.
These two nuggets (the wing and the photo) of source material collided a little later and I made ‘Obamadragonfly’ – a father and son’s point of view wrapped up into one between index fingers.
It became an obsessive task as I mapped out a gigantic version of the wing on to a board covered with dark blue velvet 250cm across, armed with only a white chalk. And then with a scalpel, possibly out of reverence to the incredible intricate engineering of this wing, decided to cut away most of the velvet to leave only the fine structure.
Several years, clearly still obsessed, filled in all the wee sections with marble sand on varnish. Finding this second wing today made me realise I'd never showed it. So here it is.
• 'Obamadragonfly' - 240cm x 120cm Velvet, acrylic paint, marble sand on wooden panel
• Detail ‘Obamadragonfly'
• Found wing 2023
• Found wing 2008
• Obama’s win on TV (05/11/2008 – 08:10:11) – Snap in my sitting room with my son Blaise playing on floor.
