War Paint

Make-up trends have recently proliferated, from thick dramatic eyebrows to highlighters and contouring kits. Alongside this, the number of social media self-portraits has increased exponentially.

By examining elaborate shop-displays, this series plays with palettes (from crimson to camouflage), scale and materials. Lipsticks, mascaras and eyeliners become skyscrapers, surfboards and missiles.

Working with both real eyeshadow and foundations, along with fine art gouache and acrylic paint, these pieces offer tactile and visual contrasts. A range of aquatint etchings focus on the starting point for this project: a fixture in a pharmacy strangely resembling a vehicle dashboard.

See menu (top right) for images in this series.

Exhibited at Espacio gallery, Brick Lane, July 2018