Film stars have become contemporary icons in a similar way to religious icons of the past. Their films tell the viewer a story and in turn comment upon and shape our society's morals in a similar way to religious paintings.

Inevitably we share the same visual background with regard to popular culture, which in turn gives our society its shared values. Having been on the same emotional journey and in turn received the same visual information.

My intention is to create modern paintings which reflect and comment upon our contemporary society in an art historical context.

The title 'Memory Still' is used as these images are indeed derived from film stills. They are painted traditionally onto canvas producing images like a bad/blurred photograph reminiscent of a memory that is, without detail but still recognisable.

The processes of blurring and painting the subject transforms a once celluloid image into the language of paint, creating a final mnemonic image that comments on our modern visual history and society but has reference to the effects of religious iconography.