I DID TRY TO FORGET

2015 - 2022 Polyvinyl acetate and acrylic mounted on acrylic painted canvas. Flow down the pain, gently at first then flail and wail birthing/dying out, out, out and [breathe in]......[and out] out. I made this piece some time ago after being deeply affected by the replica WWI trench at the Bovington Tank Museum. I mixed acrylic paint with PVA, spread it on plastic then peeled it off and mounted it on canvas. I was reminded of it after seeing the achingly moving "Theatre Reviva!" performance of R.C. Sherriff's anti-war play Journey's End at @apollotheatreiw last week. Written in 1928 and set over four days in a WWI trench, it examines the human condition in a way that is as relevant today as when it was written, 94 years ago. My thinking about this artwork was initially in terms of PTSD, but in recent years I have wanted to highlight not only pain but also, perhaps, some way out of it. I wanted to give it a description that suggested memories and emotions will continue to show up in our awareness until we find a way to be with them unconditionally; and to allow them to let us go. Available to purchase. More images available on request.