Where the Bodies are Buried (current)

I tend to work in series when I’m not working on large-scale projects. I like the idea of ‘where the bodies are buried’. It’s provocative. In this series it’s both literal and metaphorical.

Where the Bodies are Buried started with 4 paintings that worked on relief sculptures made by participants of called Woodworm 2019 with Leeds Art Gallery as part of the Yorkshire Sculpture International.

The first 4 paintings in the series. Oil on Wood.

I worked on top of the sculpted and gouged plywood made by participants in response to the anthropological collections of Leeds, that were gifted to me. Some of the participants kept their work. Others gave it to me. The ones that were given to me or left behind after the exhibition became the basis for the first 4 paintings exploring the idea of Where the Bodies Are Buried.

Where The Bodies Are Buried (Meath Gardens, London – King Cole) 2025 Oil on 3 wooden reclaimed pine floorboards

This painting is the area in Meath Gardens, London, where Aboriginal Cricketer, King Cole, is buried. It is the only marked grave in the park, a deconsecrated graveyard for the poor of London. King Cole was a member of the first ever Australian XI cricket team to visit England in 1898. It was the first and only all-Aboriginal national cricket team.

Oil, woodstain, varnish and pastel on reclaimed floorboard 105 x 23cm

I’m also interested in buried histories. Histories of other colonial ties that people have forgotten about, like the relationship between Slovakia/Czechoslovakia and Africa. We forget that Germany had its own colonies, taken by France, Belgium, Japan and Britain as reparation for World War 1.
Jelinek is a Czech name. My paternal grandparents were born in or near Bratislava and spoke German between themselves. They both spoke many other languages on the streets of Bratislava before they became refugees who were compelled by circumstances to speak English.

Oil, woodstain and varnish on reclaimed floorboard 14 x 23cm

I make paintings that defy digitalisation. They are extremely difficult to photograph. They are painted on all the visible sides, and only make sense when seen in their totality.

sideview detail with Slovakian artefacts in the British Museum: glass beads traded for palm oil in African German colonies.

My hope for this series is to create an installation with all the various works. There are currently about 20 works. Once I have completed the series I will approach spaces for exhibition.