‘Glories of modern architecture: London Wall in the 1970s’, (2013) Oil on linen, 76.3 x 101.7 cm

I moved to London in the early 1960s. I can only recall visiting London Wall once during the following decade. I found the environment aesthetically sterile, inhumane and repulsive. Nature had been virtually eliminated by the planners - in the painting just one tree is visible. This part of the City of London had been reduced to a wasteland by Nazi bombers in WW2 and the new, international style modern buildings - oblong tower blocks or slabs with curtain walling - were erected in the 1960s. High level pedestrian walkways made from concrete appeared at their bases whose purpose was to separate people from traffic. Amazingly, most of these office blocks were soon outdated and were demolished to be replaced by buildings in a post-modern style. While painting this self portait in an urban setting I had in mind Edvard Munch’s canvas depicting figures in a street walking towards the viewer, that is, ‘Evening on Karl Johan’ (1892) in Bergen Art Museum.