Fionn Wilson

There’s not a lot going on in this painting, so it seems. Two figures inhabit a shared space and we hardly see their faces (only a sliver of mine in profile). They are together, yet very much preoccupied with their own thoughts.

There is a sense that the child is leaning towards a different reality — as if she is about to turn to her right towards a captivating light — towards something mysterious. As I’ve written before, I’ve been intruiged by my daughter’s ability (and all young children do this) to suddenly become entranced (and visibly so), often seemingly by nothing in particular. Three of my paintings explore this (the two below and Edie in white jumper (2013)).

Travelling by Tube fascinates me. The sensual aspects of it — the smell of the stations; the rhythm of the escalators; the mass of faces of people moving in all different directions; the dirt and grime next to the glossy adverts; the different types of light; the roar of the tube approaching, the silences on the platform. And also this feeling that once we’re on the Tube something happens to our reality — it shifts slightly as we accommodate being underground and inhabiting this different space with others. Time seems to take on another aspect — it seems to either speed up or slow down. I often feel slightly hypnotised when I’m on the Tube.

I also really love this idea that the unusual can happen in what appears to be very mundane, urban settings. Edie is in Burger King, Wood Green — but she’s obviously somewhere else entirely. We’re both on the Tube — but there’s something else going on.

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