A large original artwork with metallic blues, pinks, golds and oranges
Big, bold colours and an infinite number of shapes are what this painting is all about.
Who cares about bland and moody; it’s time to celebrate
I could write a book on this painting…
For the first time I decided to have the creation photographed so that I could see how the art came alive after it was finished. I hope you’ll take a minute or two to click through some of the images underneath to see the story of how the artwork evolved.
I’ve yet again used brand new materials and new paints on this one; opting for a distinctive background of deep metallic blues, then walking away for a week or two before beginning the top layers. This has helped me maintain a clear separation between the two – something that was important for me to able to show off the colours on the top. From canvas cutting at the start to stapling around the frame at the end took around six weeks.
Using pinks, oranges, metallic golds and blues has allowed me the opportunity of creating some truly remarkable tonal shifts and equally stunning shapes. The ability to manipulate my paints (to get them to do as I please) is fundamental to all my work. Without an intimate knowledge of my materials my paintings will begin to look and feel like everyone elses.
The Outer Limits is unique in that I have never used these colour combinations before; in many ways I think of the picture in cosmological terms (hence the name) but also of the very small things like molecules or light waves.
Whatever it does or doesn’t say to you one thing is certain – you cannot ignore it. Adding tiny metallic flakes to a suspension of resin and pigment has produced some jaw-dropping colours and textures. If you can light this properly (it really needs a couple of spotlights as a bare minimum) then it’s going to keep on giving up its secrets for a lifetime. Definitely a painting to engage and involve you.
