I met Jane in Brick Lane, London in 2019. I was struck by how happy and hopeful she appeared. Over a period of time of getting to know her I realised how completely alone she was. Just a few metres away from Jane was a wall that was full of graffiti and it was the poster of Robert that really struck me. There was some mystery as to who Robert was. I was told that he was a homeless boy who had died in tragic circumstances completely alone although nobody that I spoke to had ever met Robert. Perhaps if someone had helped him he may be alive and not just a memory, a poster on a wall. I could see the same thing happening to Jane. She was slowly dying alone on the spot that she always stood. I wanted to show how she was destined to be a memory on a wall just like Robert. I painted the graffiti over Jane to raise the questions? Is she alive?, is she a memory?, is she a painting on a wall? The point of the work is to show the devastating loneliness of the homeless issue and that the loneliness will eventually kill.
Robert and Jane
Homeless Series PaintingsOriginal
Oil On Canvas
76cm X 100cm
2019
SOLD private collection UK