YC

"YC studied Textile Design at the University of Brighton. Since leaving college in the mid-80s, YC has worked across several design fields both in the UK and internationally, including in New York and Southern Africa. Although his formal artistic education took place in Brighton, he credits his real education to his early experiences:

"being dragged around the galleries in Barcelona as a small boy by my father, where I was introduced to the works of Alfred Wallis and Ben Nicholson."

Currently living and working in London, YC's roots are deeply connected to the South West of England, where the landscape and culture continue to influence his art. He works primarily with oil paint on canvas, occasionally using board, with a strong focus on color and composition. While YC paints semi-abstract works, there remains a figurative quality in his art. He abstracts from sources such as landscapes, harbors, boats, still lifes, or nudes, stripping away some of the conventions of representation. By carefully placing objects within his compositions, he aims to create “an awkward but calm relationship” between the subject and the viewer. The excitement for YC lies in seeing a painting come into existence through layers of textured, quickly applied paint, which he then works into, allowing the piece to naturally integrate into the canvas as a whole.

YC is also heavily influenced by mid-century European and American painting, drawing inspiration from artists like Giorgio Morandi, William Scott, and Paul Nash.

"Maybe in ten years' time, I will be fully abstract. I can't just throw paint around and pretend it means something. I want to evolve and fully understand the thought processes and practices of the modern artists of the mid-twentieth century."