Bill Hay’s new series of gouache paintings come from the artist’s deliberate decision to elevate the subconscious. His primary concern has been to engage with the paint and by so doing, surprise himself with the outcome.

Although some of the subject matter is thematically connected, this is due more to coincidence than careful planning. The inclusion of Royal Park bird-life in many paintings stems more from Hay’s regular use of the park than a predetermined effort to portray the park.

Forcing the paint, both literally and figuratively towards its limits was the driving force behind these works; finding connections and imagery in the paintings, has been for the artist, an added bonus arising from the “age old business of pushing coloured mud around with a hairy stick.”