ABOUT

Immersed in digital warfare, I developed a love of camouflage through my teenage years. In ‘Call of Duty’ and similar video games, weapon camouflages function as desirable, collectable assets. Eager to show off my in-game achievements at school, I spent countless nights gaming late. Many homework assignments were ‘lost’ as a result.

By my twenties, camouflage was shaping my real life as much as my virtual one. I could go into a long list of indulgences that I understand now as means of hiding. Whether that be weed, cigarettes, alcohol, porn, phones or sugar, more often than not, I was indulging in them whilst wearing camouflage (porn as an exception). Streetwear brand ‘Maharishi’ provided a glimmer of light when a pair of their trousers inspired my first painting. I initially wore the brand at the skatepark in an attempt to look cool, only later did I start to recognise how the brand’s transformation of camouflage into a peaceful artistic expression resonated with me and my experiences as a young male.

I want to look at camouflage from a more personal perspective. Coming from a typically reserved British background, I feel a strong reluctance to show emotion. Creating art takes me into an uncomfortable place that involves merging a deeply ingrained identity inherited from my Stone Island and jeans-wearing dad with softer, more feminine qualities. Visually, this tension appears in my work as uneasy but thoughtful interactions between straight edges and curves. I often remind myself that there are men and women who have had real-world experiences with war, and that sporting military aesthetics whilst jumping off buildings and shooting people mid-air with sniper rifles on Call of Duty is maybe a bad look. This takes me to a place where I feel I need to find more discipline, and art has forced me to do that. Although I try not to be completely engulfed in this thought, as before you know it, I’ll be doing ice baths at 5am and going sober.