The Story of Imagined Landscapes

The Story Behind the Work

It all started when I came across an image of a mirrored landscape — a collage of buildings reflected below, creating a surreal and dreamlike symmetry. I was immediately drawn to it and knew I wanted to explore the idea in my own work.

At the time, I had just been given a stack of old English magazines by my mother-in-law. As I flipped through them, I began cutting out buildings, shapes, people, and objects. Among the pages, I also discovered quirky phrases, curious headlines, and literary gems — fragments of language that made me laugh or pause — and I began weaving those into my collages as well.

Around the same time, my brother-in-law passed away. He left behind an extensive collection of books, music, and videos — a testament to his deep curiosity and love for collecting. As we sorted through everything, I gathered as many picture books as I could before the rest were gifted, sold, or passed on. These books continue to inspire my work to this day.

One of my artworks, "The Collector," was created in his honour — a patchwork of cut paper from all those different sources, layered into a tribute made from memory and meaning.

From there, the idea of mirrored landscapes continued to grow. I began experimenting with symmetry, stencils, and layering — mirroring shapes and adding cut-outs of famous faces from old books on movies and music. Elvis. Jean Arthur as Calamity Jane. They brought back memories of Sunday afternoon movies with the family — little moments of nostalgia embedded in each piece.

At times, the landscapes formed sharp, horizontal lines, reminding me of Asgard or even flat earth theories. I found myself embracing the absurd, juxtaposing the familiar with the unexpected — where context and scale don’t need to make sense. The intrigue lies in the details, in the play between the surreal and the recognizable.

Though these artworks are small to medium in size, they carry a bold presence. That’s why I’ve chosen to offer each one as a limited edition of 20, professionally photographed and printed in sizes to suit your space.

The original collages aren’t currently for sale — I’m holding onto them for now — but feel free to reach out if you're interested in one.