Sunday 27 July 2008

TTP


TTP are a series of paintings applying little dabs of acrylic to canvas. They were my first excursion back into painting after years away from paintbrushes.

Nepalese Women


Several years ago I was in Nepal on a day when all the women dressed in their red wedding clothes. The streets were full of various shades of red and of course a lot of gold jewellry. I tried to convey my memory of this in this painting which is mixed media on canvas. In size its about 3 foot by 2 foot. The white parts represent the Himalayas which are an almost constant backdrop.

Water Song


This is supposed to be a waterfall. I used mixed media on canvas.

Black Splash

These are a series of paintings using arcylics mixed with pumice which has been applied to canvas with a palette knife.









White Art


When I worked in Paris I went to see a play called Art by Yasmina Reza and later saw it in English translation at a theatre in London. It's a sort of comedy but raises questions about art and esĂȘcially about friendship. Three long time friends Serge, Marc, and Yvan get together to view Serge's latest art acquisition - a piece of modern art. It is a large, expensive canvas - completely white. Marc totally hates it. The relationship between these two friends is strained by their diveregnt opinions on what constitutes art and Yvan, caught in the middle of the conflict, tries to please and mollify both of them.
So, one day I decided to paint some pictures using only white paint but using a lot of texture. To my surprise these turned out to be the paintings that everyone liked.

Nepalese Colours

This picture juxtapositions the white of the Himalayas with the red of the women's saris on a festival day. it is mixed media on canvas and measures 2 foot by 3 foot. The more misty parts are the clouds that can surround the mountains at times but also the ambiguous feelings of the women towards their husbands. They give them the respect they expect but may not necessarily be happy with them.