My photography does not depict actual reality as such; rather, it portrays a ‘reality’ as experienced and constructed by me. By piecing together various seemingly random elements – or, in turn, by consciously casting them aside – I am able to create a new, often abstract realism full of colour and tactility in my images. These are then all painstakingly created by hand and without the use of digital technology. An image comes together much like a sculpture does: I am constantly chiselling away at various bits and pieces, continuously constructing and composing, forming that final image, that ultimate vision… 

As an artist, I very much enjoy the challenge of turning ordinary places and things into something surprising and unique. My work is full of contradiction, most notably in the way I make use of often surprising and somewhat unorthodox combinations of colour and light. This helps me to create illusory and dream-like atmospheres and moods. I often play with the traditional rules of what perspective should be, creating shadows that turn out not to be shadows at all. Or, by contrast, a picture might see light creeping into the frame where you wouldn’t expect it.

Another way in which I am able to add a surprising aspect to my work is by using materials that evoke a certain materiality and tactility: hard, cold concrete rubs up against brittle, fragile flowers or delicate paper. These all evoke a certain emotion; they provide a feeling of warmth or coolness. And it is by playing with all of these elements – colour, light, materials – that I strive to add another dimension to my work, both literal and emotional: the viewer finds that the two-dimensional photo in front of them has unexpectedly transformed into a three-dimensional world in which to reach and feel, subtly and ethereally enveloping themselves with a new sensation, with a sense of wonder and marvel.