Denise Weston

"Girls (The Female Gaze)"

Denise is currently working on her 'Girls' series (2011-21012). This series of work has its origin in a painting first produced in 2006, 'Girl no.1'. This image was inspired by a newspaper article focusing on women writers. Work on the series was then delayed owing to prior work commitments. In 2010 Denise began to select suitable candidates for the expansion of the project.

Denise is painting a number of different 'girls' who are all currently in their 30s, 40s and 50s. The idea of archiving memories is a significant factor in her work. Gerhard Richter's painting '48 Portraits' (1971-72) is an influence along with Marlene Dumas's series ,'Model and Rejects' 1994. Denise seeks to explore the concept of female 'beauty' and the stereotypical depiction of women models. In her paintings the 'model' confronts the viewer through a varied series of interactions as depicted by the female artist.

Working with traditional methods - such as oil paint, where under painting and glazing can be used to build rich layers - the paintings become a metaphor for the passage of time, referencing personal and shared memory, and a sense of both time passing and time shifting.

Denise Weston 2012.