Inferno

The painting

Inferno is a medium sized abstract painting comprising of red and orange as its main feature colours. Added to this are a complimentary selection of burgundy, gold, yellow and white. It really does fell like your in front of fire and flames doesn’t it? That was the whole point and the driving force behind creating it.

All of this wonderful drama is set off against an exterior of black that is subsequently fused with all of the colors that I’ve mentioned. The technique is actually one of the simplest in terms of process but one of the most complex to get right, mainly because you only have one shot at getting it right. Permit me to explain.

The technique

At its heart, this painting is a one brush deal. I apply all the paint I want onto the canvas AT ONCE. So everything goes on before I begin to move it around. No pant is added after this point. I can better illustrate what I mean in the live stream video that accompanies this original painting and you can see that process as it happened down in the link below.

Anyway, once all the paint is on the canvas I can begin to maneuver it around using a 3 inch brush. Tis is where every twist and turn counts as I begin to morph and fuse colors together as I gently navigate my way around the edges of the canvas sheet  which is always laid flat on the floor.

Each decision, every turn and every twist is a permanent record of creation. I love that about this technique. The result is always pleasing as you tend to get a very dramatic finish. In this particular original some of that is down to the combination of colors I have used but also in the way I have moved the paint around.

The finish

It’s glossy in some parts and semi-glossy in others. The changes in texture between thick and thin paint applications gives you a series of dramatic undulations as light moves around it. That’s a really neat effect and something you can’t really see in the photographs.

The details are extraordinary and some of the close up photos show you how deep that detail level goes. Have a glance at the pic with the yellow streak in it – see what I mean? I could stare at that for hours!

If you need to bring a space to life and have a desire to bring drama and warmth into it then this could just be the one for you. I can see it feeling especially at home anywhere with natural wood finishes.