Icon (Flower Headband)
​2020

[23.5 carat gold on polythene]

The first in a series of smaller paintings using gold leaf and polythene. Unlike in Shroud where motifs derived from selfie-filters are repeated, in Icon (Flower Headband) a selfie-filter coronet of flowers hovers in the negative space of the polythene placed approximately where the top of a forehead would sit if there was a face in the image. Icon (Flower Headband) is a kind of portraiture, combining references to two forms of portraiture: the religious icon and the selfie. The painting takes its dimensions from the artist’s smartphone screen, whilst the rectangular gold band which frames the image is evocative of the often gilded frame of the religious icon.