Tales of the uncanny and personal reference, a self portrait of the artist as a toy – curator Sarah Sparkes’ brief; ‘The Hollow’ formed a segment section of We Could Not Agree, an independent art event at underground venue Q-Park hosted by Geoff Leong, Cedric Christie and Vanya Balogh.

The Curtain Dog stomps past surreptitiously on his makeshift stilts lighting the path with a small bedroom light. Bringing to mind a displaced Diogenes carrying a hopeful small lampshade lantern through the complex sophistication of the art world, his oversized stuffed head and large button eyes purposefully sniffing out a safe passage through the circularity of the subteranean parking space under London’s shopping streets, hotels, restaurants and the seasonal Frieze art fair.
The original curtain dog was fashioned from left over kitchen curtain fabric in the sixties. Making was an integral part of entertainment our growing up world. My dad made us toys; rocking horses, toy chests, puppets, and I, my sister and three brothers made theatres, props, disguises and characters and toys for each other. I made the first curtain dog for my youngest brother who absorbed him into his circle of play friends.

The stilts are part of another story, as this is a portrait of the artist as a full sized toy, they are used to bring the childish character to adult lifesize.