Octavarium


Octavarium was painted onto a flat sheet of canvas, primed three times before painting. It was then stretched across a hand-made frame using 2 inch square section seasoned timber. It was painted in industrial gloss enamel paints thinned using my secret formula. This large sized painting measures 190cm x 140cm (6ft 2 by 4ft 6). When I first began to think about this painting I can recall that I was motivated by a comment that someone made about the use of black in my paintings and as a result their suggestion was that I couldn’t produce a work of art that was worthy of hanging if it didn’t have any black in it. Naturally I can’t resist a challenge so I set about researching a concept of drip art that would work without black or any such dark colours.

Normally, depending on the artist you look at, there is usually some kind of dark colour in the painting. By it’s very nature there is always a need to pull colour and shape together to form some kind of sense and cohesion to a piece of drip art. It’s rare to find works that rely on brighter colours alone as you tend to lose some of the boldness of the technique.

However, what I have managed to create is a painting that stands on its own merits, looks fantastic and has no heaviness of black, gray or other pronounced dark tones. Instead I used a combination of blues to produce the main structure of the piece – which consists of a number of light blue arcs and an overlay of orange complimentary arcs over the top. This has formed the basis for the drip applications elsewhere in the piece.

In the top photograph you can see how intricate the paint is, formed out of painstakingly meticulous and strictly controlled dripping and pouring, one colour at a time. For what may seem a relatively simple process one must bear in mind the scale of this piece – at this size a single application of paint can take six to seven hours to get right, often using the smallest of brushes and tools to get the detail level right as well as the overall balance of colours. Add this to the number of times I have added colour layers to build up the effects and you begin to see how long the process takes.

Like so many of my works this is really two paintings in one. From a distance away the overall effect is one of balance and calm, the painting becoming tranquil and blended – almost as if it were one continuous form of colour. As you get closer in you begin to look at shapes that emerge from the surface of the canvas, teasing the eye to look and to gaze. Further in and the piece begins to separate into distinctive areas of form and colour, all weaved with a delicate and fragile intricacy that’s not visible unless you see it up close and personal.

This is a very complex piece of art, it has a simple colour scheme but a rich and complex myriad of shapes and textures. If you are looking for bold shapes and colour then consider looking at another one of my pieces, however, if a large format painting in a subtle and interesting palette is something that would fit into your life then please mail your regional contact using the drop down ‘Contact’ box above.

Price on Application

Comes with a signed Certificate of Authenticity from the artist.

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