‘The subjects of these new paintings are drawn from urban youth, hip-hop culture. As the title suggests, it is the complex constructions of attitude and bravado in the subjects that provide the dynamic for this show. They are not synonymous with the ‘bling-bling’ stereotypes portrayed in mass media, but are young boys and girls who aspire to the ‘ Crystal quaffing’ antics of their idols. The small watercolour paintings are mainly based on photographs taken over the summer of 2003, at various carnivals and parties, although some are from magazines and television. While these figures may at times seem tentatively familiar, they are anonymous and all sources remain non specific. The glamour of these subjects is challenged by the fake labels on their clothes and the neutral background; but the paint itself, applied in disjointed patches of colour, also function to unsettle any presumed trajectory between the youth centre and MTV. Instead a welling-up of blind hope is tangible manifest as the paintings modestly coalesce around the form of a rude-boy or girl in their creative moment.’

Fiona graduated from the Royal College of Art with an MA in Painting in 2002. Various group shows include ‘Snow at Transition, ‘Reel’ at Culford Rd, and ‘The State of The House’ at the Korean Ambassadors Residence. Fiona lives and works in London.