Statement

Andrews works in oils and uses traditional techniques such as underpainting and glazes to create startling illusions of flesh and body mass. He works meticulously to recreate what he sees, observing the finest details and subtleties in light and form.

However, beneath the undeniable technical skills Andrews displays as a painter, it is his exploration of self-image in the subjects he chooses that sets him apart. He invites us to look at how we see ourselves and how others perceive us, suggesting that there is something inherently voyeuristic about our culture. In some of his portrait works the sitter's gaze is averted from the viewer, as though we are in some way unwelcome or witnessing a private moment. In others the pose is more confrontational, and the detail frank and disarming.

In his latest works, Andrews is exploring the concept of the portrait from person to animal. He lived and worked on a farm for Four years and saw the subject matter as a natural progression, imbuing these animal portraits with the same observations and emotions as he does his other works, seeing sadness and beauty in the still lives in front of him.

Andrews works to commission, and his sitters have included Omer Koc, Lord Dennis Healey, Lord Levy and contemporary artist Franko B - whose portrait was selected for the BP Portrait Award in 2007. Very recently, Andrews completed a major commission for the Royal College of Surgeons of England. The painting, 4m wide by 1.6m high, portrays the 28 members of the Royal College of Surgeons and now hangs at the College at Lincoln's Inn Fields, London. In effect, the commission was 28 individual portraits and took over 500 days to complete.

Andrews is currently working on a number of private commissions and a new series of portraits exploring his ongoing interest in self-image and the body.