The Space of Colour

Colour offers us pathways to connect with our memories and dreams and evokes ideas of what is possible. These works on canvas were conceived in 2020 when Melbourne was in lock-down with Covid and our freedoms were restricted. During this time, I found comfort in the studio from the space and freedom accessible through working with colour patterns.

I was drawn toward the idea of colour sequence and repetition Using regular geometric patterns and staying contained within a grid offered comfort by creating a sense of knowing of what comes next; in a time when everything in the future, in the world around us was uncertain.

In these paintings on canvas vivid colours are used to create patterns which are painted freehand with acrylic paint, a process that I found totally absorbing and which provided a way to escape reality. The noticeable shifts in the patterns of colour and repetition were created to reflect a change in predictability, that mirrored life around us, when restrictions on daily life and freedoms were enforce.

I have included in the exhibition some framed watercolours on paper that show free blooms of colour and gestural strokes which reflect a spontanaity and freedom. Paintings which contrast with the works on canvas that reference the difference between freedom and restriction which I love – the before and after.

Paintings on Canvas