Highly commended

▼ David Wilkey Miles Away, oil, 35½335½in (90390cm).

David has been a fulltime artist since retiring, having previously worked in the design and print industry and painting in his spare time. ‘My subject is inspired by what’s around me – particularly people and the streets of my hometown, Bath. When I walk or travel, I typically take numerous photographs and like to browse through them upon returning home, looking for that unique moment captured. The source picture for this painting was taken on the journey from south west Wales to Bath. My working process from here is to experiment with it in Photoshop (my sketchbook) and look at various visual possibilities. I then project it onto the canvas and paint an umber underpainting to sort out the tonal values before the final colour version. This picture is in a series I call ‘Negative Space’ using positive and negative areas to select viewpoints, therefore controlling how the viewer sees and responds to the image. I am now experimenting with a new hybrid approach – mixing two or more disciplines of art in one picture.’