The Inconvenience of History I, 2003, oil and inkjet on viscose on linen, 81x122cm
This project consisted of 2 field trips to Israel and the Occupied Territories in 2002 and resulted in an exhibition which opened at the London institute Gallery in 2004 and which subsequently toured to the Naughton Gallery, Queen’s University, Belfast, the Derby Museum, and Aberystwyth Art Gallery. It was undertaken under the auspices of Christian Aid at a time when Israeli incursions into the West Bank and Gaza had resulted in considerable escalation of the conflict. My approach was travel to the areas most affected, interview both Palestinians and Israelis, and record
with a stills and video camera material which would later be incorporated into paintings in the studio.
The paintings themselves emerged from observations I made whilst I travelled in the region, sometimes deliberately using the historical and cultural perspective of the Judaeo-Christian tradition to allude to the importance of the Middle East in global politics. I employed a variety of approaches to image making, including digital media and ink jet printing mounted onto canvas. This involved further exploration on the computer both for storing and manipulating my direct source material in the process of making the paintings. The second visit to the region and the studio process was filmed by the BBC and the documentary John Keane: Artist at War broadcast on BBC4 and BBC2. A catalogue was published with an introduction by Suzanne Goldenberg, who for several years was Guardian correspondent in Jerusalem.
The Inconvenience of History II, 2003, oil and inkjet on viscose on linen, 81x122cm
The Inconvenience of History III, 2003, oil and inkjet on viscose on linen, 81x122cm
The Inconvenience of History IV, 2003, oil and inkjet on viscose on linen, 81x122cm
No Arabs no Terror , 2003, oil and inkjet on viscose on linen , 117x81cm
Security, Impunity Geometry and Terror, 2003, Oil on Linen , 61x61cm
Ismael, 2003, oil and inkjet on viscose on linen , 126x84cm
Jenin From Armageddon, 2003, Oil and gold leaf on canvas , 66x91cm
Tel Aviv from the Occupied Territories, 2003, oil and gold leaf on canvas, 157x158cm
Moment, 2003, oil and inkjet on paper on canvas, 173x293cm
Road to a Settlement 1, 2002, oil and inkjet on paper on canvas
Hopeless in Gaza (Road to Settlement), 2002, oil on linen , 137 x 183 cm
Ramallah Ramallah , 2003, oil and inkjet on viscose on linen, 25.5 x 20 cm each panel
School of the Innocents I, Jenin 2002, oil, beeswax and photocopies on paper
Hopeless in Gaza 2 (Nativity), 2003, oil and photocopy on linen, 162x137cm
How Still We See Thee Lie (darkness and light in the church of the nativity), 2003, oil and photocopy on linen , 198x162cm
Armageddon Now, 2003, oil and inkjet on viscose on linen, 165x250cm
Muqata, 2002, oil on inkjet on paper
The Office of Yasser Arafat, 2003, Oil/gold leaf on canvas , 142x183cm
Road to Settlement II, 2002, oil on inkjet on paper, 75 x 100 cm