Recent paintings from her studios, summarising an exploration of the still-life in itself and as discipline.
---
Artist Statement: STILL LIFE – the Emerging Form
The smaller paintings were begun in the Spring of 2024. The size restriction allows me to compress their dynamic, making their energy or ‘charge’ more concentrated. It is the very direct nature of Still Life which excites me, through repetition of subject matter I am able to focus on the aspect which most engages me: the relationship between the form and its surrounding space. Through animating that space it is possible to pull the form out of the void which constitutes a positive act of creation. This process sounds simple but I destroy many paintings on the way – my intentions often elude me and it can take months of adjustments to achieve my goal.
The six oil paintings are painted directly from life and not confined to a symmetrical format. Painted on heavy, sized watercolour paper I am able to tear or cut the surface and prevent them from becoming ‘fixed’. Working fast with a palette knife and fine brush I keep up a momentum while I paint which allows me to capture the subject as a whole. Colour and light are of equal importance to me. As the paintings progress, I feel a sense of bringing the forms out of darkness and into light.
The six acrylic and gouache paintings are different in mood. These paintings are made from images taken in artificial light at night. The result is more dramatic and theatrical. The objects are set on a stage-like structure and as the medium is closer to drawing the flowers and jugs are painted with more definition. The water-based medium has helped the energy of the mark making flow through the paintings.
