I tell the world my work is about mental health and the marginalised, and then I show them people.

No labels. No categories. Just people, moving through life together.

Human. Beautiful. Ordinary.

Sally Matthews — portrait painting by Siris Hill

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Sally Matthews

“I grew up with Sally, she was the first artist I ever knew.”
Taryn Everdeen — portrait painting by Siris Hill

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Taryn Everdeen

“I met Taryn the way everyone meets Taryn. Unexpectedly.”
David Shenton — portrait painting by Siris Hill

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David Shenton

“David reminded me what it feels like to be led by curiosity.”
Plum — portrait painting by Siris Hill

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Plum

“Plum is not contained by any of the descriptions given to her.”
Salah El Nagar — portrait painting by Siris Hill

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Salah El Nagar

“I painted him not as a man displaced, but as a man who reclaims space.”
Pete Turrell — portrait painting by Siris Hill

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Pete Turrell

“He held the night together, gently, like it belongs to everyone else.”
Plum — Siris Hill

Ordinary

As someone who belongs to multiple marginalised groups, I know how quickly words and labels can silence a person before they are heard. Once they name you, they decide you. They call it understanding, but it is a theft. A slow, insidious theft of self.

Mental illness is often framed in extremes, but life doesn't exist in absolutes. It exists in the in-between, the day to day, the Ordinary.

I go from town to town, sitting with people for hours, days, sometimes weeks. I live alongside each person, learning them in the way an actor learns a character, and when I find them, I paint them.

My measure of success is the moment I show someone their portrait. I want them to see something undeniable, untouchable by their inner critic.

Painting from the Ordinary series by Siris Hill

A Portrait of Siris Hill

First screened at the National Gallery, London, July 2026.
Created by 97films, director Callum Crossland.

“I go from town to town. I sit with people for hours, days, sometimes weeks. I drink their coffee. I hear their stories.
I feel the weight of their days settle into my own skin. If I’m doing it right, I disappear into it entirely.

By the time I leave, I don’t know who’s being painted. Them, or me.”

Painting from the Ordinary series by Siris Hill
Siris Hill — studio

History

My practice comes from lived experience. I grew up with chronic illness and spent much of my childhood and adolescence in medical systems that regularly removed my agency. As a teenager, I developed symptoms later diagnosed as CPTSD. My health created distance between my family, and by nineteen, I was estranged from them and became homeless.

The transition of rehousing left me agoraphobic and unable to go outside. Ordinary created an opportunity for me to heal after spending years mostly at home.

It started in my hometown. It was my friends who helped me by encouraging me to engage in their communities, which pushed me to leave my home. I painted and wrote about these experiences. These ordinary people, who in my life were exceptional. Later I started travelling the country, approaching strangers and giving them the same attention I would give to a friend.

Ordinary was born from that.

Behind the Scenes

Photographing Sally for the Ordinary series
Setting up a portrait shoot in David’s home
Salah at his festival food stall
Siris Hill during a shoot in the meadow
An open mic night, part of the Ordinary series
Photographing Plum for the Ordinary series
On location, setting up a portrait in the field
A subject at work, part of the Ordinary series
Setting up a portrait shoot in David’s home