![#](https://make-arch.imgix.net/https%3A%2F%2Fwww.makearchitects.com%2Fwp-content%2Fuploads%2F2019%2F03%2FTightrope.jpg?auto=format&crop=center&fit=crop&h=132&ixlib=php-1.2.1&w=210&s=144e1df100944c4832044030387f162c 210w,https://make-arch.imgix.net/https%3A%2F%2Fwww.makearchitects.com%2Fwp-content%2Fuploads%2F2019%2F03%2FTightrope.jpg?auto=format&crop=center&fit=crop&h=264&ixlib=php-1.2.1&w=420&s=74141e0766b1632a346211b936747a6e 420w,https://make-arch.imgix.net/https%3A%2F%2Fwww.makearchitects.com%2Fwp-content%2Fuploads%2F2019%2F03%2FTightrope.jpg?auto=format&crop=center&fit=crop&h=482&ixlib=php-1.2.1&w=768&s=f5f55dff8cf0c6cb0817d8569f1efdd9 768w,https://make-arch.imgix.net/https%3A%2F%2Fwww.makearchitects.com%2Fwp-content%2Fuploads%2F2019%2F03%2FTightrope.jpg?auto=format&crop=center&fit=crop&h=643&ixlib=php-1.2.1&w=1024&s=e3376fea065b8326f59c44ca41709436 1024w,https://make-arch.imgix.net/https%3A%2F%2Fwww.makearchitects.com%2Fwp-content%2Fuploads%2F2019%2F03%2FTightrope.jpg?auto=format&crop=center&fit=crop&h=879&ixlib=php-1.2.1&w=1400&s=799ffc36e8e5ddc69ccced2d82a17ff6 1400w,https://make-arch.imgix.net/https%3A%2F%2Fwww.makearchitects.com%2Fwp-content%2Fuploads%2F2019%2F03%2FTightrope.jpg?auto=format&crop=center&fit=crop&h=1004&ixlib=php-1.2.1&w=1600&s=ebb95f8f4bd5667a8b01349b4f6ed15d 1600w,https://make-arch.imgix.net/https%3A%2F%2Fwww.makearchitects.com%2Fwp-content%2Fuploads%2F2019%2F03%2FTightrope.jpg?auto=format&crop=center&fit=crop&h=1205&ixlib=php-1.2.1&w=1920&s=693179a83532472a6e0349d444cec940 1920w)
If I was going to search for one defining imperative for my work, it would be Balance.
We go through our lives trying to navigate, to make the best of the conditions we are confronted with, and with the tools and skills we possess to achieve an optimum outcome. Balance might be seen as a state of equilibrium between opposing forces some of which we can control and some we cannot predict, manage, or prepare for. These forces shape the course and quality of our lives. Balance is where we exist at any moment in a dynamic spectrum. It follows a concept of “both / and” that allows for fertile modes of self-expression.
![#](https://make-arch.imgix.net/https%3A%2F%2Fwww.makearchitects.com%2Fwp-content%2Fuploads%2F2019%2F03%2F12_F4_The-Absurdity-of-Beauty_IdyllicAndDistantSea.jpg?auto=format&crop=center&fit=crop&h=211&ixlib=php-1.2.1&w=210&s=cdbbe7b8d20a01c0500bddf7fa6d45b4 210w,https://make-arch.imgix.net/https%3A%2F%2Fwww.makearchitects.com%2Fwp-content%2Fuploads%2F2019%2F03%2F12_F4_The-Absurdity-of-Beauty_IdyllicAndDistantSea.jpg?auto=format&crop=center&fit=crop&h=422&ixlib=php-1.2.1&w=420&s=d845badc28c793031b5410639a0489ac 420w,https://make-arch.imgix.net/https%3A%2F%2Fwww.makearchitects.com%2Fwp-content%2Fuploads%2F2019%2F03%2F12_F4_The-Absurdity-of-Beauty_IdyllicAndDistantSea.jpg?auto=format&crop=center&fit=crop&h=772&ixlib=php-1.2.1&w=768&s=1e6084d4538bfe183e5bf4bb75795b52 768w,https://make-arch.imgix.net/https%3A%2F%2Fwww.makearchitects.com%2Fwp-content%2Fuploads%2F2019%2F03%2F12_F4_The-Absurdity-of-Beauty_IdyllicAndDistantSea.jpg?auto=format&crop=center&fit=crop&h=1029&ixlib=php-1.2.1&w=1024&s=8d64469216a76382767ab17d5b963b3a 1024w,https://make-arch.imgix.net/https%3A%2F%2Fwww.makearchitects.com%2Fwp-content%2Fuploads%2F2019%2F03%2F12_F4_The-Absurdity-of-Beauty_IdyllicAndDistantSea.jpg?auto=format&crop=center&fit=crop&h=1407&ixlib=php-1.2.1&w=1400&s=94ecbbbf078d8ca3812436d3a1a7093c 1400w,https://make-arch.imgix.net/https%3A%2F%2Fwww.makearchitects.com%2Fwp-content%2Fuploads%2F2019%2F03%2F12_F4_The-Absurdity-of-Beauty_IdyllicAndDistantSea.jpg?auto=format&crop=center&fit=crop&h=1609&ixlib=php-1.2.1&w=1600&s=8c146aa6d842740db24a0a388b9177bd 1600w,https://make-arch.imgix.net/https%3A%2F%2Fwww.makearchitects.com%2Fwp-content%2Fuploads%2F2019%2F03%2F12_F4_The-Absurdity-of-Beauty_IdyllicAndDistantSea.jpg?auto=format&crop=center&fit=crop&h=1930&ixlib=php-1.2.1&w=1920&s=919c8f6e39597e2d3c12c47e845263d8 1920w)
In terms of these paintings, their primary focus is to explore and ultimately express a sense of balance, on both an emotional and intellectual level. This sense of balance comes from observing the world that we live in, as well as developing a sense of what balance means as philosophical approach to existence and our relationships with each other. The use of form, texture, and color all conspire to share this sense of balance, which here is most often represented as calm, but can also be haunting with a deep sense of longing. It is an expression about a point of view on how one might relate to the world, and how this might make you feel. The work tries to tempt you into balancing your intellect with your emotions in a dynamic that approaches parity.
There are multiple references to contemporary painters in the work, and early efforts were an attempt to explore and reinterpret some aspect of their work, to follow the exercise of, understanding through the act of painting. Over time this developed into an equilibrium of influences. You spend time learning and absorbing what history offers you, and then at some point you let it all go and follow the flow of your creative muse.
![#](https://make-arch.imgix.net/https%3A%2F%2Fwww.makearchitects.com%2Fwp-content%2Fuploads%2F2019%2F03%2F07_F4_The-Absurdity-of-Beauty_DomainOfElusiveDream.jpg?auto=format&crop=center&fit=crop&h=253&ixlib=php-1.2.1&w=210&s=e31142b4e1246f7200eb4d9c33718cb1 210w,https://make-arch.imgix.net/https%3A%2F%2Fwww.makearchitects.com%2Fwp-content%2Fuploads%2F2019%2F03%2F07_F4_The-Absurdity-of-Beauty_DomainOfElusiveDream.jpg?auto=format&crop=center&fit=crop&h=505&ixlib=php-1.2.1&w=420&s=ca072fe59408b9819f0f4ddc7f15143b 420w,https://make-arch.imgix.net/https%3A%2F%2Fwww.makearchitects.com%2Fwp-content%2Fuploads%2F2019%2F03%2F07_F4_The-Absurdity-of-Beauty_DomainOfElusiveDream.jpg?auto=format&crop=center&fit=crop&h=924&ixlib=php-1.2.1&w=768&s=f8e722cc4023e5c96211e11a7483f887 768w,https://make-arch.imgix.net/https%3A%2F%2Fwww.makearchitects.com%2Fwp-content%2Fuploads%2F2019%2F03%2F07_F4_The-Absurdity-of-Beauty_DomainOfElusiveDream.jpg?auto=format&crop=center&fit=crop&h=1232&ixlib=php-1.2.1&w=1024&s=989657182757a37cd292d25829c590bc 1024w,https://make-arch.imgix.net/https%3A%2F%2Fwww.makearchitects.com%2Fwp-content%2Fuploads%2F2019%2F03%2F07_F4_The-Absurdity-of-Beauty_DomainOfElusiveDream.jpg?auto=format&crop=center&fit=crop&h=1685&ixlib=php-1.2.1&w=1400&s=66578088807329e6ae95581631d12d34 1400w,https://make-arch.imgix.net/https%3A%2F%2Fwww.makearchitects.com%2Fwp-content%2Fuploads%2F2019%2F03%2F07_F4_The-Absurdity-of-Beauty_DomainOfElusiveDream.jpg?auto=format&crop=center&fit=crop&h=1925&ixlib=php-1.2.1&w=1600&s=40637ec5ec643e2464fea937b71ddef8 1600w,https://make-arch.imgix.net/https%3A%2F%2Fwww.makearchitects.com%2Fwp-content%2Fuploads%2F2019%2F03%2F07_F4_The-Absurdity-of-Beauty_DomainOfElusiveDream.jpg?auto=format&crop=center&fit=crop&h=2310&ixlib=php-1.2.1&w=1920&s=82573b81f6f7da9830eeee86398b144f 1920w)
While the watercolors emphasize emotional content, there is a narrative to each of these paintings, sometimes left intentionally obscure, which invites you to craft your own storyline. In that they all originated as daydreams, of places not in existence, places invented, and sometimes as a collective memory of places visited physically and through various media including photography, film, and literature … each watercolor is, in a sense, an unwritten poem, which has found expression visually, that invites you to inhabit your dreams.
This post forms part of our series on The Architecture Drawing Prize: an open drawing competition curated by Make, WAF and Sir John Soane’s Museum to highlight the importance of drawing in architecture.