About
My name is Tom W Keep, and I built this site to show some of my work as a visual Artist.
All of the pieces were created on my iPhone 7 while I was in the hospital to mend a shattered hip. I spent nearly four months unable to do more than sit up with 12 of those weeks being only able to sit at a 30-degree angle. I had lots of IVs, for a time a PICC line, a bed that took pressure off me, and monitoring devices attached, so I could only move my arms slightly without setting off alarms or pulling out stuff.
Covid had struct hard here, and most of the hospitals in the city were packed, so after a month, I was flown down to a hospital in Kelarney, and this is where the work began. It was quite an experience.
Most of the work was created in a program called Procreate Pocket using my index finger on whichever arm had the least amount of equipment attached to it. I was exhausted and had limited energy. I tried to finish one piece a day. I had picked up several infections, including blood poisoning, so I was being treated for that, as well as nutrients and pain management. If my one arm got tired and had no IV attached to the other, I would switch to the other hand.
I had only worked a little in Procreate Pocket prior, but I was familiar with the iPad version Procreate. Pocket is a lighter version that runs very well on the phone. It is a bit more limited but has the same ease of use as Procreate. I needed something to occupy my mind and deal with the utter boredom of lying in bed.
I am putting the work up here because the files are small and not of the highest resolution (one of the drawbacks to the lighter version). Any prints made have been smaller in nature. I'm hoping to print some off using Giclee printing because I am a bit leery about the permanence of digital media, and I would like to see them in a physical state. In light of that, putting them up here so they just don't sit on a hard drive will allow views and maybe others will enjoy them as much as I do.
Some of the work is reliant on Pareidolia. Apophenia and other ways the brain tries to make something from nonsense or random items. Most are not as they seem as you look at them you will notice other layers.
I would also like to thank the Staff at the Hospital who helped me heal, cleaned me up when needed , adminstered treatments, kept my room spotless and supported me by encouraging my progress. I can't say enough about you all. Thank. you from the bottom of my heart.
