All Summer Long

A tickled pink abstract

You have to admit that pink is a very joyous colour. Used in the right way it can bring brightness, life and happiness. Add in some carefully chosen complimentary colours and you have all the ingredients for a painting that really celebrates the good things.

Good old Telemagenta

I use this particular shade of pink a lot in my work (Telemagenta). Sometimes it’s for accents and sometimes it’s for the tiniest hints. On this occasion though it’s the main event. I was never going to be happy with big slabs of colour so I decided to bring the size of the canvas down a bit and really pack in some detailing. Paintings of this size have to work up close as well as from afar.

Unusual tools?

One of the ways I get my details so fine and almost infinite is because I use needles and syringes. It’s an unusual way to apply paint for sure but what it does is give me the ability to place very finely controlled amounts of paint exactly where I need them.

The added bonus is that I can also suck paint back up again and redistribute it if I have to; it’s neat little trick I use often when the syringes come out.

Why this painting works

Very often it’s the subtlest of things that make a painting work. With a pink abstract like All Summer Long the secret of its uplifting happiness is the inclusion of small layers of green and that gorgeous sunset yellow. These are two colours we can instantly associate with the summer, recalling memories of golden skies at dusk and the green grass that surrounds us.

It also works because it has an effortless organic nature to it. Instead of using straight lines and big blocks of colour I’ve gone for a more natural and flowing technique – perhaps that’s reminiscent of what summer is all about then? That with nurture comes bloom, with sunlight comes warmth and with colour comes contentment.