In this work, David Bates tackles a very traditional subject matter - the seated male figure - but offers a unique take on this from through his use of materials. The partially painted wood scraps reference folk-art traditions. They also recall the artist’s paintings, which use heavy lines and angular forms. In his sculptures, Bates assembles relatively flat elements to create a fully three-dimensional object.

The artist embraces the irregular shapes and imperfections of his material. The resulting object is a balancing act between abstraction and representation. Similar to the way John Chamberlain manipulates car parts into an abstract sculpture, in Seated Man- Hyde Park, Bates combines various pieces from other objects to produce a final artwork.