A BRITISH artist has created an exhibition inspired by toy action figures from his childhood that he found in his mom’s attic.

    Joe Simpson, 32, from Cheshire created the 34 oil paintings in the “Figure Series” that will be exhibited for the first time next month.

    Simpson, who has previously had his paintings shown in The National Portrait Gallery, The Royal Albert Hall and the House of Commons, said, “This project started whilst going through my mom’s attic sorting through my old belongings and on discovering my old toys I got a wave of nostalgia and memories from these little inanimate plastic figures.

    “They were such a big part of my life as a child.

    “As a child, I took my Batman figure to school with me so when I hadn’t seen them for 20 years, to touch them again gave me a lasting memory that took me back in time to being a kid.”

    Simpson said he hoped to “evoke” a similar nostalgic reaction for the audience — so that they would feel like a child too when they see them in person.

    He said, “Nostalgia can be alluring and seductive, but strangely potent — like an unexpected punch in the stomach. The Greek etymology of the word literally means ‘the pain from an old wound.’

    “When you haven’t seen something for years — they’ve been hidden away in a box, shut away in the attic uncorrupted by later associations — to see them again provokes an involuntary memory and acts as a portal back in time, provoking a moment of appreciation rather than mere recollection.”

    Simpson created the works in different parts — with the Lego toys he found first in the loft being painted initially.

    But once he finished the first set, he wanted to create more — so went back to the attic to get some different toys.

    He painted 10 “Star Wars” figures and 12 other figurines — including He-Man, Ghostbusters characters and Transformers — to add to the 12 Lego paintings.

    The toy paintings are all painted on a natural canvas deliberately left to juxtapose.

    Simpson said, “I played around with colors but I thought it would be nice to leave the natural weave of the linen to juxtapose to the plastic and smooth surfaces of the toys.”

    He also highlighted the different surfaces of the toys.

    He said, “I’ve tried to paint them in a way that describes the tactile surface of each figure, the texture, the touch — even the taste, which sounds a little odd, but I think most kids chewed on their toys at some point, and taste is such a strong evoker of nostalgia due to the initial processing of these stimuli passing through the emotional seat of the brain.

    “For example, painting the He-Man figure, I tried to make the head look squishy and chewy compared to the rigid plastic of his torso.”

    Overall, Simpson took over a year to create the 34 paintings, taking a few weeks to create each one.

    Now Simpson will exhibit the works for the first time in London at The Old Brewery on Brick Lane.

    The exhibition will run at The Old Truman Brewery from Feb. 24 to March 5, 2017 from 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. Admission is free.

    (SD-Agencies)