My work has evolved from political stencil art into a series of abstract portrait paintings exploring the emotions we often carry quietly within ourselves.
These paintings use bold colour, structured shapes and carefully layered masking techniques to explore the tension between internal chaos and the ways we try to hold ourselves together.
The shift didn’t happen overnight. It developed gradually through experimentation, reflection, and a desire to create work that resonates on a more personal level.
Recently, I completed a new painting titled I Need a Moment. While finishing it, I found myself reflecting on how my work arrived at this point—and why these portraits have become such an important part of my practice.
From Stencil Art to Portraiture
When I first began painting seriously, my work was heavily influenced by stencil art and artists such as Banksy.
At that time, my focus was very much on the external world.
I created pieces that commented on issues I believed needed attention—environmental destruction, political corruption, and the growing divide between wealth and poverty. Each artwork functioned almost like a visual statement.
Over time, however, I began to feel that constantly searching for the next idea was becoming exhausting. With the speed at which visual commentary now travels online, I also started to question whether work based purely on topical statements could ever feel lasting.
That realisation led me to a different question:
Instead of asking what should I say about the world, I began to wonder:
How does the world affect us internally?
The Year That Changed My Direction
Two years ago, I was offered the opportunity to stage a solo exhibition at Peterborough Museum.
The exhibition space consisted of three large rooms, and rather than simply fill them with existing work, I decided to spend a year developing something more personal.
During that time, I experimented with new ideas, techniques, and approaches to portraiture. Slowly, the style that defines my current work began to emerge.
Instead of addressing world events directly, the paintings started to explore the internal emotional landscape those events create within us.
Stress.
Frustration.
Anxiety.
Hope.
Emotions that are shared across cultures, backgrounds, and experiences.
Why I Use Masking Tape
One of the defining elements of my paintings is the use of masking tape to construct the image.
Each portrait is built gradually, with sections carefully masked off and painted before the tape is removed and the next layer begins. The process is slow and deliberate, but it plays an important role in how the paintings communicate.
Although the faces often suggest internal tension or unease, the painting itself is created through control, structure, and order.
In many ways, the technique mirrors how we navigate our own emotional lives. Internally, we may feel chaotic or overwhelmed, yet externally we try to organise those emotions and hold ourselves together.
The structure within the painting becomes a visual metaphor for that experience.
Structure and Emotion
While the portraits appear fragmented, they are carefully constructed compositions. Each line and shape is placed deliberately, allowing emotion to emerge through structure rather than chaos.
This tension between control and expression is something I find endlessly fascinating. It reflects how we experience emotion—complex and often overwhelming internally, yet presented outwardly with a sense of composure.
The paintings sit somewhere between those two states: the emotional and the controlled.
Colour, Tension and Balance
Although the expressions within my portraits often contain elements of frustration or quiet tension, colour plays an equally important role.
Bright colours introduce energy and life into the work, preventing it from becoming purely dark or heavy.
During my exhibition at Peterborough Museum, visitors pointed out something I hadn’t consciously planned. The earlier rooms contained darker works, while the later portraits incorporated increasingly vibrant colour.
Despite the expressions of angst, the colour introduced a sense of hope.
That balance has remained central to my work ever since.
The paintings acknowledge that life can be difficult, but they also recognise resilience—and the possibility of moving forward.
A Shared Human Experience
One of the most powerful aspects of that exhibition was the conversations that happened in front of the paintings.
Visitors spoke openly about their own experiences. Some became emotional as they explained how the work resonated with them.
What I realised in those moments was that the paintings had unintentionally created a kind of safe space.
People recognised something of themselves in the work.
And when that recognition happens, something important becomes clear:
None of us are alone in the way we feel.
Paintings That Live With You
When I create a painting, I want it to achieve two things.
First, I want it to say something meaningful about the human experience.
But equally important is the idea that the work can exist comfortably within someone’s home.
When someone chooses to live with a painting, it becomes part of their daily environment—something they return to, often discovering new meanings over time.
Art doesn’t need to shout to be powerful. Often, the most meaningful pieces are the ones that continue speaking quietly.
Continuing the Journey
The painting I Need a Moment is one step within this ongoing exploration.
Like many of the portraits I create, it reflects the quiet internal struggles people often carry privately.
My hope is that when someone encounters these abstract portrait paintings, they recognise something familiar—a moment of tension, reflection, or understanding.
Because sometimes the most powerful thing art can do is remind us that what we feel individually is, in fact, shared.
You can explore more of these works in my Original Paintings collection where I share the latest pieces from this ongoing series.
Frequently Asked Questions About My Abstract Portrait Paintings
What inspires your abstract portrait paintings?
My work explores shared emotional experiences—pressure, reflection, and resilience—translated through colour, structure and form.
Why do you use masking tape in your paintings?
Masking allows me to build structure and precision into each piece. Conceptually, it reflects how we organise and contain internal emotion.
Are your portraits based on real people?
No—these works represent emotional states rather than individuals, allowing viewers to project their own experiences onto the image.
Where can I see your latest work?
You can explore my original paintings here where new pieces are added as they’re completed.
