Michael Rutherford interviews painter Leslie Bell about his work and process.

Bell remarks: "The history of painterly expression goes back to the caves but skips generations along the way. The pendulum swings…loose; tight; loose; tight. What excites me most is a dynamic combination of description and expression. I remember as a little kid marveling at Rembrandt’s Woman at the Half Door at the National Gallery in Washington. One second, the painting was a series of splotches and organic accidents. The next second, a precise sort of light, body language and emotional tone were pouring out of the painting. I love abstraction. I love realism (in the Manet sense) but the seamless combination of the two is where my heart leaps… Non-formulaic storytelling is very important to me. From Giotto onwards, there have always been artists who bring a private and personal viewpoint to their analysis of human life and values."