Game Over

'Game Over' looks across an empty football ground after the activity has finished. Viewed from behind the goal, the pitch sits quietly beneath the remaining floodlights as mist softens the landscape beyond.

Most of my football paintings begin with the activity around the game, players on the pitch, people gathering, training sessions or the distinctive atmosphere created beneath the floodlights.

Game Over looks at what happens afterwards.

The viewpoint is from behind the goal, looking across the empty pitch towards the stands and the landscape beyond. The goal net remains between the viewer and the ground, but the players and spectators have gone.

I deliberately kept the floodlights relatively subdued. They're still present, but they no longer dominate the scene. Instead, the misty landscape and colourful night sky begin to take over as the football ground settles back into quiet.

That absence became as important as the activity that came before it.

For a few hours, a football ground can become a place of noise, movement and shared attention. Then the game ends, everybody leaves, and the same space becomes almost completely still.

The title Game Over captures that transition, the moment when the purpose of the evening has finished, but traces of it remain.

Painting coming soon...