For the May 2022 ArtWeeks exhibition, I will be exhibiting my newest collection of abstract work. This collection of abstract paintings use vintage reproduction maps of Oxford as the canvases - and jumping off point - for my vibrant, bold mark making approach.

Saved from bin (or, more probably, being recycled) when the Museum of Oxford had a clear out of reproduction vintage maps, these maps have been a revelation in my approach to painting, in the structure to both integrate and push against within the practice of my art. The combination of the structure of the cartography coupled with unpredictable and often obscuring marks, brush strokes, paint and ink splatters is producing a new dimension to my work. It feels as though the layers of abstraction are reproducing the history of the maps themselves - as many are reproductions from the early 20th century, many of the areas of Oxford they depict are unrecognisable to onlookers today. The locations have been built on, reconstructed, shifted, etc. Similarly, my paintings layer themselves, adding to the topography and often obscuring the original artwork (as the maps are an art in and of themselves) beneath.

I am pleased to be returning, after a two-year hiatus, to exhibit with six other artists as part of the Old School Art Collective for the 2022 Oxfordshire ArtWeeks. We are at Venue 17, Thurs 12 to Sun 15 May. My work will be exhibited alongside a huge range of talented creatives, who work in a range of disciplines from pottery and paintings to wood turning, pyrography, and digital art. There will definitely be something for everyone, so please do pop in during the event!

Due to the huge range of works we have on display, our group exhibition will be relevant to various of this year's themed art trails - from the Tactile Treasures of our knitter Nicky to the Beauty of Small Things in the pottery, wood, and pyrography objects from Helen, Marcus, and John, and on to the Figures and Forms of Lula's drawings and Danny's paintings. My own work, through the combination of Oxford reproduction maps and mark-making style of painting gives an abstract twist on the Oxfordshire Landscapes. And in the combination of some bold uses of colour - from neon acrylics in pink and yellow to striking splatters of black - means my work definitely fits Celebration of Colour. I'm at home most in abstract painting, and use mark making of various kinds with different brushes, palette knives, and ink pipettes to create a depth of abstraction, which - alongside the map canvases I am using for - create Degrees of Abstraction in my newest collection of work.