“Bed awaits me”

“Bed awaits me” explores the role and function of the bed as a place that gives us soothing, comfort self-regulation amidst the rhythms of daily life. Using an immersive scale and deliberate framing the paintings articulate a room to be felt even where partly defined. The bed forms remain simple and unadorned, allowing colour, light and shadow to carry the weight. The viridian hue and the saturation portrays an eerie and uncanny sense to the viewer. In this manner the work speaks the importance of self- regulation methods and spaces in a context of information and sensory overload. The bed becomes more than a familiar domestic object, it represents a space of retreat, rest, and emotional regulation.

*‘Develop Gradually’, 2026, Oil on canvas, 101.7 x 152.6cm*

*‘Pause and Breathe’, 2026, Oil on Canvas, 101.6 x 121.92cm*

The source material for this body of work comes from photographs Jessica Gaffney has both taken and found through research. The large scale of the paintings reflects an intense desire to be enveloped by the subject matter, to be able to create an immersive space where the viewer can enter, pause, and feel held within the work.

The subject matter, a familiar compositional Gaffney approaches throughout the series, suggests a sense of comfort, safety, and refuge. The bed becomes more than a familiar domestic object; it represents a space of retreat, rest, and emotional regulation. Whereas the viridian hue and the saturation portrays an eerie and uncanny sense to the viewer.

Although Gaffney began the series at the start of 2026, it has developed through ongoing experimentation with colour, tonal palettes, composition, and form. Through this process, I have been searching for a visual language capable of expressing the emotional qualities of a self-regulating space, the places, sensations, and environments we seek when we need to feel safe and comforted.

Due to recent events, Gaffney was led to re-learn and explore new methods of self-regulation, opening up a new dimension within their practice. Compelled to consider not only their own experience, but also how a viewer might physically and emotionally interact with the work.

*‘Walk the Motions’, 2026, Oil on canvas, 101.7 x 152.6cm*

“Daily Dawns another day;/ I must up, to make my way. / Though I dress and drink and eat, / Move my fingers and my feet, / Learn a little, here and there, / Weep and laugh and sweat and swear, / Hear a song, or watch a stage, / Leave some words upon a page, / Claim a foe, or hail a friend- / Bed awaits me at the end.”

By Dorothy Parker (1893-1967)