JFK Turner’s work is concerned with the unnoticed ephemeral elements of everyday life; found objects, marks, stains and the natural effect of time. The objects Turner collects from the street form the basis of the work.
The paintings are not abstract – they are based on something from the real world – for example a rubber band, a screwed-up piece of paper, or a flap on a cardboard box. These are non-objects, just the remnants of life.
The works are closer to objects than traditional paintings. If paint is used it is house hold paint that is poured, smeared and allowed to congeal and crack – like spilt paint on a pavement. In addition to paint Turner uses found materials – wax, plaster, photographs, paper, discarded books and clothes. Working on wood allows the surface to be attacked by scratching, sanding and stabbing. This adds to the works physical quality – like a collagraph printing plate or a religious icon.
Turner takes objects and elements from the real world, combines them together to create another object. The ordinary becomes unusual and other.
