Tim French uses a basic oil painting formula – a drawing, an under painting and then a variety of glazing and scumbling techniques. Formally he strives for a pleasing composition that includes colour and objects working together to draw the viewer into a field of it’s influence. Like the Surrealists, his work is greatly influenced by the unconscious. He sees his work as “personal exorcism, and a way to look up the skirt of the super-ego.”
“My artwork represents an examination of the dark aspects of my personality. For me, art making has never been a choice, but rather a catharsis, or a psychological need to purge the contents of my mind. Much like the Surrealist, I use dream imagery and intuition to bring forth the irrational and sometimes dangerous aspects of my personality; but, unlike the Surrealist, my goal or desire is to examine, understand and positively integrate the rational and irrational aspects of my personality.” – Tim French
