Emerging artist Laurence Jones is fascinated by processes of figuration, and how painterly devices can be used to construct a narrative.
His first solo exhibition in London, Night Works is a collection of several major paintings focusing on hyper-modern dwelling spaces, which Jones re-imagines as settings taut with a sense of imminent drama. The screen-like finish of each work, achieved through dextrously applied layers of acrylic and glaze, creates a strongly immersive experience for the viewer. And yet, just as we are drawn in, the sense of staged imagery - a strange feeling of déja vu fed by our over-exposure to modern day media - places his paintings in an ambiguous state between fiction and reality. The works investigate the nature of the gaze as well as fabricated spaces.
'I intend for the worlds created to feel real; familiar and immersive, but balanced with the idea that the normal rules don’t apply – the way shadows fall, the solid appearance of surfaces being called into question, the feeling that at any given moment a wall could fade into nothingness or a horizon could collapse in on itself; subtle clues which question the notion of the real. Equally, I hope the works present open-ended narratives, which are completed by the viewer.' - Laurence Jones