Inside explorative painter Jake Aikman's Cape Town studio

The artist shows us around the space where his atmospheric, contemplative works are conceived

My most recent exhibition, 'Haunt' at Smac Gallery in Johannesburg (February 2017), featured a number of my more abstract works on wood. These works in a sense take on the arrival on dry land quite literally. My brother lives in Knysna, and in this past year I've been visiting him and exploring the forest.

Unlike the sea, which is obviously uninhabitable, the forest triggered in me a sense of belonging. The environment can be shaped to accommodate. I used wood panels for the abstract works to directly reference the environment and, as well as paint, I carved and chopped into them in an atavistic, explorative way.

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My studio was filled with these large finished works before they headed to Joburg for 'Haunt'. Greens tie the seascapes to the abstract wooden works, which reference woodland.

Here I am in front of a large seascape in progress. I started surfing from a young age, and that brought me into direct contact with the ocean. I am fascinated by its beauty and the very real vulnerability it evokes. I have explored that tension with the inclusion of a distant shoreline on some of the works. I'm interested in posing questions. Am I leaving or arriving on dry land?

My studio has a panoramic view of Table Mountain, and I spend a lot time watching it change with the weather and light. It's always there to challenge me to hike up to the top of it, which is part of my routine. Buildings obstruct the view north, but the seagulls and ships' fog horns remind one of the city's proximity to the sea.

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This is my studio display wall. It's filled with a range of small works from detailed seascapes on canvas, as well as abstract impasto and fragmented wooden boards.

• Jake Aikman is represented by Smac Gallery, smacgallery.com