I can see it too! (2018)

I can see it too! (2018)
With any good abstract painting each viewer will tend to see different things in the shapes and forms that unfold across the canvas, and part of the joy is finding out what other people can see: often this leads to new discoveries of our own! This picture is about a shared vision, a shared idea: being with someone who thinks in a similar way and understands your dreams – no matter how abstract – or someone who can point out new paths and concepts which you hadn’t considered before, and suddenly opens up new doors.
 
This piece is from a 2018 collection called Magic, Wisdom and Beauty and was done specifically for the SOLO 44 exhibition at New Zealand Academy of Fine Arts in Wellington. This series follows on immediately from a solo exhibition of realist portraiture (What Matters Most, Feb 2018, Bread & Butter Fine Art Gallery, Whitianga) and is clearly an unleashing of ideas and energy after months and months of controlled and restrained realism. Whereas the portrait exhibition was all about reflecting the spirit of the 7 women I painted – and my relationship with them – this series of work is about MY spirit, and the way I perceive the world: with enthusiasm, wonder and joy. This series is the story of the Intrepid Explorer – sure, calm and centred, even when alone, regardless of what is going on around them.
This explorer is secure in their own bubble but still very much engaged with the world: able to step back and appreciate the beauty and wonder with awe, without feeling overwhelmed by external factors.
These paintings are done predominantly with palette knife, layering acrylic to create the depth and excitement and colour and light that I feel around me.