Sam-Taylor Wood creates video works and performances herself within the context of her experience in the film industry. Human figures become isolated, exposed to the viewer yet contained within the boundaries of the set they inhabit and the character they have temporarily become. There is a sense of cathartic emotion within much of the work - crying, shouting, falling all take prominence. Yet there is subtly, an inarticulateness that suggests a complexity to the characters and an ambiguity to the scene that allows the viewer a more universal experience in terms of emotion and identity - 'personality as performance' (Dear God, how much longer do I have to go?, Michael O'Pray, 1996). This universally relatable, emotionally raw use of character is something I am conscious of myself - the artist as an actor, a representation of the very real emotion, experience and sense of identity I wish to express. Other facets of Taylor-Wood's work that I find relevant include her use of absurdity and actions/images that seem out of context (such as the nude dancer in Brontosaurus), the equilibrium found in tragic humour - sadness, loss, failure met with objects or actions that often amuse - falling, nudity, balloons (Escape Artist (Multicoloured)) and the sense of vulnerability (particularly but not confined to the masculine figure) that is explored through these devices.