Neil Roberts

“I am most inspired by dreams, music, obscure books and the human form (the female form in particular). I am an idea factory and love to be taken away by a tangent of creative impulses pushing me into realms of profound experiences. I have borrowed from and in turn paid homage to the surrealist artists, occult writer Aleister Crowley, erotic photographers like Roy Stewart and in particular painter/photographer Man Ray.

My early forms of inspiration emanated from the Roger Dean album covers of my father’s rock collection. I usually start a piece with a certain concept or vision in mind which then branches into an avalanche of related ideas. I then try to filter the resulting raw material and create a certain core theme usually using digital software. I paint from a combination of life painting and photographs.

I choose to mainly paint with oils giving my work an almost classic feel to them. Painting with oils for me is tantamount to caressing my lover’s thigh. Although I have a lot of respect and indulge in photography or digital creations often, I find viewers tend to respond to and appreciate my works more keenly in this way.

When people see my work I like them to experience both a mixture of nostalgia and déjà vu. In past exhibitions I generally like to invite the people who feature in the works presented, as this generally creates a strange sense of familiarity in the room as usually most of them have never met before.”