This has been a mad year, World War III, its not over yet....hopefully soon. Break on through to the other side!
“London Style”, 40x40”, acrylic on canvas (When I Think of London Style I Think of Burberry)
Year 2020, full of incredible surprises, perseverance and thinking outside the square.
I came to London from France to wait for the world to open borders. After participating in the art fair of Monaco and sightseeing and waiting it was time to come to London. The lockdown was announced and I found myself in New Bond Street infront of the Burberry store looking at the windows and really wanting to see the British icon in Britain finally.
I walked inside the store and received such a warm welcome from Niky. We started talking about art and how the Burberry store had such amazing themed environment, its walls being dipped in colours of blue and pink, the rose room. I started to realise how everything was incredibly positioned and we talked about complementary colours of green and red and blue and orange. No wonder the atmosphere was so lovely based on pinks, baby blues and pistachios with such a variety of ochres, beiges and browns. I was so inspired. I knew the lockdown was the time to really reflect.
I wanted to celebrate the fabric in this painting, the linen that it is made of Belgian grown flax and woven in Scotland. Without fabric we can’t have clothing or paintings, fabric is the basis and foundation. This is how gabardine was created by Thomas Burberry watching the farmers protecting themselves from rain and wind with linen and wool covered in lanolin. I selected this canvas raw and unprimed to experience a creation process while contemplating Thomas Burberry story and English weather and history. Acrylic paint is like a glue, it does not require priming, it can be applied to raw canvas, something akin to lanolin and also makes it waterproof.
When you come to London in autumn first time you start to notice coats and scarves, beautiful wool, tartans. So dignified. The pallet of colours becomes earthy - beiges and greys and browns. Such beautiful colours, generating physical and mental warmth. When I think of London style, Burberry scarf comes to mind with its particular recognisable gorgeous tartan.
After being in London for some time I started to see that my raw unprimed canvas looks so much like the colour of brick London buildings.
When I started to draw the monogram I realised it looked a bit like a window, like an opening to another world, a world of Unicorn and dreams, and magic and creativity. I also realised that Unicorn has been with Burberry for a long time as well as present on coat of arms. I also feel like it comes out at night and roams through the parks of London and it has to be pink. The colours have been inspired by the colours in the Burberry store in London in New Bond Street.
The white outline of the monogram reminds me of the windows in London. They are nearly always of bright white colour and serve almost as an outline. To me the monogram seems to be a window into another world. The colours of the monogram also seem to be the colours of Albert bridge in Chelsea. I discovered the bridge after I finished painting the blue and the green and needing to buy the white paint I went to Chelsea to the art supply store. When I saw gorgeous pastel Albert bridge with columns in blue, green and white I realised I chose the right colour - white for the outline. I never knew that white was such a London colour. When my plane was descending over London I saw a lot of of white from the sky. Suprise!
Painting on such rough surface also reminded me how a tailor marks the fabric with chalk and sometimes has to redraw the lines. I had a couple of lines like that and I left them in as reminders about very important guys - the tailors. The signature, I didn’t want it to be perfect, but a little emotional.
Unicorn requires a special mention. It has been in in the house of Burberry for a long time. It is mythical,beautiful, powerful and something that cannot be tamed. It’s a symbol of hope, a symbol of magic, and especially this year we could all do with extra magic!
I wish for magic and freedom to return to our lives. Magic is about creating and expressing and sharing together. This year has been filled with fear and uncertainties. I wish to think that the Unicorn is the powerful positive universal force to break through the cage of all limitations and to open up the world, and to free everyone from fear. Your Own, Personal, Unicorn… The best in me sees the best in you, as they say.
Watercolour Sketches, quarter sheet, rough grain cold press paper, watercolour
The times have been difficult and I am turning within and continuing with the loose sketchbook in watercolours. One always learns.
"All To Myself", 36x40", acrylic on canvas
A fresh morning with colourful foliage, dew drops from the rain the night before, very clear blue sky - a Sydney autumn morning at the Sydney Roayal Botanic Gardens . That quiet moment where you can have nature all to yourself, the walk way to yourself and lots of opportunities to study nature and take photos as an artist or just purely enjoy, which is an art in itself. It is a time when things appeared to me bright, pristine, luscious and magical. So I set out to capture it.
"Loose Sketch Book",5.5x10.5", handmade paper, acrylic gesso, pastels
Continuous exploration of pastels, textures, old masters inspirations, experimenting and being inspired, learning and studying.
"For The Love Of It"
9x12" acrylic on canvas, 9 works od feelings of favourite places and things I miss right now
"DanceFlowers" series of 6 paintings, 9x12", acrylic on canvas
"Spirit Of Australia" series, 5x7", oil on canvas
"Tender Is The Night, My City", 36x40", oil and acrylic on canvas
This scene means a lot to me, and I am so happy that I have chosen this topic. It’s the view from the revolving @obardining in Australia Square building. The dark blue of the night that reminds me of the blue of the Australian flag, and the luminous @rfpaints oil colours remind me of the Australian opal colours. Having lived on the North shore of the bridge for many years and having crossed this bridge by car and by bus numerous times, having been under this bridge at night with friends. During my corporate days I have seen clients in that building and had a dinner with colleagues in the same restaurant. And this time it was really brother @millermigration and sister time over champagne that started the inspiration and when the dots of emotions asked memories connected together. My art school in the Rocks, my jobs in Wynyard and other places, my Chinese medicine college in Chinatown, the ups and downs, the wins and the tears. It all happened here - My City of Sydney. Now it is on the canvas. To me it symbolises perfection and tenderness and openness of this city to everyone who is here, being unbiased, accommodating and giving everyone a chance. This is 18 years of my life in this painting 🖼 .
“I drive on her streets
'Cause she's my companion
I walk through her hills
'Cause she knows who I am
She sees my good deeds
And she kisses me windy
I never worry
Now that is a lie” - Under The Bridge, Red Hot Chili Peppers
Watch the video - https://youtu.be/OPX8rsOd3Wc?si=rU-e06NBZw8f2fDY
"Fantasy, My Little House Under The Palm", 34x24", acrylic and pigment on canvas
We all have that special "house and garden" in our heart, this is what I fancy, being lost in flowers and shrubs, under a tiled roof
I have chosen to depict a palm tree as a symbol of "running out of natural resources". In the world there is a proliferation of the use of palm oil, and for that vast amounts of land have been cut down and palm trees planted destroying orangutan habitats, water sources, Amazon forest has been cut by the farmers for profits from palm oil. Large countries like China and India depend on oceans of palm oil to cook as oil cooking is their main and most of the time only cooking method. This drives further devastation and climate change as the lungs of the planet of all kinds of trees are cut to give way for this water hungry palm. Although I didn't depict the oil palm, all palm trees according to scientists have soil underneath them which is very poor in nutrients due to lack of rotting foliage. No birds nest on palm trees except crows and rats. Palms are a problem for the migrant birds as they cannot really rest in them or nest in them on the way. Proliferation of palm trees leads to decreased soil fertility and decline in bird varieties and populations. They do look fabulous though and we all love palm trees views. What a an illusion of everything being beautiful and well. We live in a fantasy. My painting reflects that fantasy and that all that is left is some shrubs and palm trees in the world.
"Tranquility", Series of 6 paintings, acrylic on canvas, circa 65x65cm
Artist on Location
I researched what I painted, me trekking through the parks, zoo and Raffles Hotel in Singapore. All of these places have been reflected in my paintings.
