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Lindsay Pickett

My main practice involves painting with oils on canvas, linen and board. I start with a basic study of a composition idea, take it further as a small watercolour painting as a final idea and then develop it more as the finished oil painting. I also use photographs to create a visual reality that can be convincing at times and especially if I want to get the likeness of a personís face. It has also been good for me in the fact that it has taught me to use observational skills a lot. A lot of what I now paint is something that I have mainly taught myself. I enjoy painting a lot because it gives the imagery more colour and character as well as being hands on.
The strongest influences in my work arise from Surrealism and fantasy art. Hieronymus Bosch, Pieter Brueghel, Rene Magritte and M. C. Escher are also influential. With Escher, metamorphosis is a recurring theme as it is with Salvador Dali and this drew me to their work. My painting practice started when research into Hieronymus Bosch and Salvador Dali took place. It is important for me to execute images which bear resemblance to Bosch with his hybrid monsters and to Daliís photographic detail. This allows my imagination to run wild.

My own contemporary concerns include the use of people that I have known or still know through my own life as different characters in any given work. They usually depict a recent dream I had about them or general experiences in my life as a whole. I also like to produce eccentric but characteristic drawings of these people as well which is why Edward Lear has been an influence. Simon Granger and Patrick Hughes have interested me also. I also look at fantasy artists who paint images for science fiction illustrations and particularly like looking at the alien landscapes they create, artists such as Wayne Barlowe, Jim Burns and Stephen Youll come to mind.