New 'Winter Shadows' series

I've been playing with shadows and perceptions of form, distilling them down into something more minimal. Colour is still important in these ones, but in a more limited palette. As you already know, I have a bit of a thing for shadows and how they play across surfaces, defining form. On a sunny winters day they seem to be at their best - long, low and crisp. 

This exploration has translated into a new series of small paintings, my Winter Shadows series.

I was reminded recently of a task we were set in my first year studying Industrial Design, where we had to draw a collection of objects by sketching only the shadows and nothing else. It was the first time I became consciously aware that you could define a form using nothing more than a shadow - the brain fills in all the gaps, brilliant! It also produces a pleasingly minimal outcome!

I’m always curious whether everyone’s brain deciphers such simplified information in the same way - or not. Most often I have a definite idea of what I see in my paintings, but I’m surprised how often others see something completely different. Recently I was telling my son what I was going to call one of these new paintings, and he asked why? Turned out he interpreted it quite a different way and saw a very different form. I like that people see different things! We are all different, after all.

You can see the full Winter Shadows series here, where you’ll also be able to read a little more about the inspiration behind these pieces.