A self-taught figurative artist with a natural inclination towards portraiture and expressionism.

He is using art to explore the concepts of free will and believing in oneself. Free will is not seen as the freedom to choose between different outcomes, but as the freedom to live instinctively and fully aligned to one’s nature: a bird does not make a reasoned decision to fly, it flies. As birds are, so should humanity be, but in the realms of mathematics, dance, art, scientific investigation, nursing and so on.

Believing in himself is being explored by using pens and media which cannot be erased. Mark making is permanent. Combining these with an EDM soundtrack enables Simon to move the hand quickly and disconnect reason and concern. The work becomes almost meditative: an emotional, authentic response to the model. Ultimately, it is teaching Simon how to trust himself.

His work is characterized by a chaotic energy. Fast, automatic movements of the pen, and impasto paintwork. His focus is on the light and the shadow of the body and giving the observer a sense of the artist’s eye roaming freely across it.

Simon is not trying to create an image of a figure or a face, but a response to the figure and the face seated before him. He values the purposefulness of life and the individuality of the person and hopes that the models see something of themselves within the work.

His inspirations include Lucien Freud, Henri Matisse and Frank Auerbach.

Working in the finance industry, Simon is married and has four children.