A close cropped, large scale close up of a red Camellia against a deep, textured background. This piece is built up over weeks with multiple layers of glazes to create the glowing effect of the petals emanating from the darkness. The surrounding edges are textured to give a contrasting feel, representing the concrete harshness of the city that the flower has grown in against the soft smoothness of the petals. For me, the camellia indicates the start of Spring, as they’re always amongst the first flowers I see in my east London neighbourhood gardens, signalling the end of a long cold London winter and the emergence of an abundance of urban wildlife for the next few months at least. While not originally native to the UK, Camellias are actually beneficial for our birds, bees and butterflies, in particular during the colder months.

Dom Holmes

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Dom Holmes is a Queer British Painter and visual artist working and residing in East London. Their work is regularly exhibited across the UK and Europe, and can be found in private and public collections worldwide. Dom’s work reflects an ongoing fascination with the human connection to nature within an urban environment. Their large-scale paintings depict botanical life found in city settings - in particular those found in community planters, public parks, window boxes, households and urban gardenscapes - exploring the value of nature within local communities, and the relevance of seasonal wildlife at the intersection of late-stage capitalism, individualism and climate crisis. With a highly successful career as an internationally renowned tattooer, social historian and mixed-media artist dating back to 2002, Dom’s principal oil painting practice evolved from a period of self-directed study beginning in 2017. Their experiences with counter-culture and non-traditional art forms has shaped their painting work and the ways in which they connect their art with the world around them, drawing inspiration from the under-represented and overlooked. They work in traditional oil painting methods, using minimal materials, specifically using glazes and colour theory to build depth, darkness and intensity of colour with the fewest pigments possible, establishing an environmentally conscious approach to their practice. Their intentional painting technique uses detailed underpaintings, elaborated with multiple layers of glazes to bring the piece to life, with each piece taking weeks to complete. Dom’s works have been shown in notable galleries, exhibitions and fairs worldwide, including Mall Galleries, Free Painters and Sculptors, Tarpey Gallery, Stolen Space, Swanfall Art, The Other Art Fair and Queer Britain. They were Artist in Residence with WOLF Jaipur in Jan-Feb 2026.