WETLANDS (2024)

Exploring and celebrating the unique landscapes of Walthamstow and Tottenham.

From the steep banks and calm waters of the reservoirs to the intermingling of trees and reeds, and the ever-present electricity pylons that tower over the scenery, this area has a distinctive look – at once wild and profoundly manmade. With its wide horizons, expansive skies and bodies of water, the wetlands and marshes offer solace from the concrete jungle of the city, both for human residents and the biodiverse ecosystem of invertebrates, mammals, fish and, of course, the spectacular birdlife that are a major attraction for visitors.

“This exhibition is a love letter to Lea Valley. I have lived at both ends of it, having grown up in Hertford and since lived in Stratford, Hackney and now Tottenham. I am fascinated by the sharp contrast of walking out of these intensely urban, post-industrial areas into broad, calm expanse of the marshland. Immediately you are in a different world and all your senses are stimulated by new sensations. The whoosh of the grasses in the wind, the heady smell of blossom, the bright sunlight of the open landscape, the tang of a foraged blackberry, and the explosion of birdsong.

“The work in this exhibition is the result of several years joyful study of the Tottenham Marshes and Walthamstow Wetlands. As well as making sketches in situ for reference material in the studio, many pieces in the exhibition have also been created wholly or partially outside, working en plein air and standing amongst the vegetation for visceral response to the natural world."