Vans brings together the work of Shaun Morris and Paul Newman, featuring the van as both a personal and social symbol. Influenced by the traditions of landscape painting and the realities of contemporary urban life, their paintings explore memory, work, consumption, and change in modern Britain.
Shaun’s paintings examine the van as a defining feature of the contemporary landscape. Through close observation, he transforms these overlooked vehicles into symbols of labour, consumption, and economic growth. His work explores how vans reflect the pressures of modern life, inviting reflection on work, value, sustainability, and society.
Paul’s work draws on childhood memories, Romantic landscape painting, and popular culture. A chance encounter with a Ford Escort van, echoing memories of his father’s weekly return home, inspired a recurring motif. Alongside Gothic figures, these images explore memory, change, decay, and uncertainty in a shifting world.
