Original Irish oil on wood painting. by

Description

This painting  was inspired by that bitter sweet experience of being at a funfare at the end of the night when things are starting to wind down and people are starting to head home. Most of the rides are being wound down and locked up for the night and a light drizzle of rain had started.

As a young kid I was struck by the realisation that this was just a job for the staff and that they were not having the fun the public were having. For them the experience was just kind of empty. They had long since lost any sense of pleasure from the ‘amusements’ and were just going through the motions.

It is also inspired a little by the music of Tom Waits, he sings about this kind of stuff all the time and I have been a fan of his work for decades.