Double or drop

Those of you old enough to remember 'Crackerjack' will doubtless find 'Double or drop' familiar. As to whether or not it will help in understanding my latest painting, I doubt it. Having completed my own 'Artsweek' exhibition while putting the work all back in store I have had time to reflect on the experience of meeting my 'public'. The most often asked question was "what is it about", closely followed by "where do you get your ideas from"? The second one is easy to answer (from a little shop in Walthamstow), the first is more complicated in that it presumes that I know, which isn't actually accurate. I suspect that the questioners found my answer "that I don't yet know", either implausible or downright disingenuous. My process of generating imagery is wholly intuitive - ideas arise out of whatever life presents me with at any particular time. I make choices based on a 'like or dislike' basis as to what I paint and exactly how it is put together. I don't analyse why I choose - I just trust that it may become apparent when the resultant painting is complete. As to the 'meaning' that viewer seems to crave, there aren't any 'answers' in the paintings - only questions. I once heard Melvyn Bragg, on talking about his writing, say that "I only know what I think when I write what I feel". I can relate that to my own practice and I wish that I was as confident as he about the outcome.