Artist Statement
A story emerges through this body of work. We are taken on a journey through a dream or series of dreams where magic and mystery are ever-present. There are choices about the direction we take or the decisions we make to travel through the dream to the end…if it ever does.
On a visit to a fishing village in Northumberland, I saw three strange figures who might have been part of a film set. I found the contrast of the peculiar characters in the quaint village unsettling but wonderful. They were so dreamlike and unexpected that they profoundly affected me and became central to the inspiration for this body of work. They are the Mischiefs. It’s up to you to decide what they represent.
Throughout this ethereal journey, mythical symbols highlight the choices that have to be made. Clocks tick slowly; compasses whirl trying to guide us, pushing and pulling but in which direction? Many changes occur in this body of work, from calm, restful comfort and serenity to dark magical mystery with an element of disorder. The ambiguity between light and dark, harmony and chaos, is part of the complexity of the human journey.
These multilayered works begin with gestural underpainting and the spray painting of carefully chosen stencils to set our thoughts in motion. Why are these symbols here? What do they represent? Inks, glazes and detail are gradually added, and acrylic is applied with various tools to bring depth and atmosphere to each painting.
Since childhood, I have always had a love of stories and storytelling. This has stayed with me through thirty-three years of teaching young children right through to the present day.
Like dreams, I am not sure if my series will ever end.
I invite you to travel through the story I have created…
Where will your imagination take you?
Annie Kennerley, 2023
‘I dream my painting; I paint my dream’…