Iwas born and raised in the city of Liverpool, UK, in a working-class family. Liverpool is a port city, a city that is independent and with a disregard for authority couple with a sense of sceptical humour. It is a city with numerous public museums, galleries, and libraries, with a strong tradition of auto-didacticism. All of these factors are reflected in my work.
There are two broad themes central to my work. The first is a method of work that draws on contemporary theories of installation, museum display, and architecture (both real and imagined). The basic tenet of the concept of installation, that art works always exist in a relationship and dialogue with site and the viewer, is crucial to my practice, and provides the driving force behind the design of the work. I embrace ideas of theatricality and narrative, and see the works as nodal points in a network of ideas.
The underlying ideas, the second theme of my working practice, cover a range that includes the philosophies of science and knowledge, memory, the manner in which architecture and objects produce narratives. Multiple sources connect to this main framework, from science-fiction films, tv, and narratives, to contemporary literature, poetry, and music from the medieval to the contemporary. Scientific ideas from many fields are an important resource, and form a context for the work rather than being illustrated or used as documentary material.
The work is accessible, open to interpretation, and laced with a degree of humour.