Laying the canvas flat lets Whelan proceed with a surgeon’s precision whilst not compromising or assuming what may come. Drawing inspiration from the natural world, his canvases swirl like painterly voyages of the consciousness and draw attention to the beauty, fragility and vulnerability of our environment.

Furthermore, he is intrigued by the possibility of genuine interaction that each piece of the installation and the installation as a whole may have with the audience. The element of spontaneity and rawness is deliberately built into his work to allow for discovery, and this renders the work versatile and multilayered.

“I am fascinated in how basic materials can be turned into something poetic; a canvas filled with light, feeling, and emotion. The challenge lies in attempting to reach that stage. My current bodies of work examine the fragility of the actual; the processing of our place in the now.” 

“Water is flowing in the river, 

And river is within me.”