Peter James Houghton
Painter of the vestiges of Northern factory belts
Artworks
"As long as I can remember I have had an interest in psycho-geography and what binds people affectionately to places that others may consider an eyesore".
Artworks
Urban landscapes
It is not people as such that interest me as much as their human footprint and its effect on the landscape. I find it infinitely more satisfying to paint a scene or story as told by a building's scars.
Underpasses
The daunting scratched walls and tiles and layers of graffiti in subways offer a glimpse into generations of lives that have walked through them. I like this ruthlessly marked asymmetry over the original sleek modernist architecture.
Bins
An ongoing project of mine to attempt to capture public bins in all their decayed glory. I find them to have their own very particular quiet fortitude.
Salford paintings
Salford continues to inspire my work with its ever-changing skyline. But it is the residual working class soul lurking beneath the new layer of affluence in this city that intrigues me most.
British seaside
The British seaside is characterised by charming coastal towns, traditional piers, fish and chips, ice cream stalls, and colourful beach huts.