Exhibition notes

 

This collection started from a sketch book of doodles created in the depths of the winter of 2005 in which initial ramblings grew into more intricate and complex pieces.

The challenge was to develop both the size and form of these first pieces without lessening their spontaneity.  Just as when an artist’s mind needs to be free to think and aspire, the hand must be free to create without strictures. But to create a piece from the imagination and retain the energy is a conundrum.    

From the small introspective doodles, the images grew larger.  Working with acrylics, the first paintings were of flowing lines, again black on white background, a continuation of the doodles in the sketchbook.  Overcoming the difficulty of painting lines with an, at first, unwieldy paintbrush, the confidence and control improved and the works grew in size and structure.

Having conquered the paintbrush, the contents of the works were challenged.  Tones and colours were introduced, both as backgrounds and gradually the paintings became softer and more rhythmic.

The final large works were born of a need to break free of the black and white tones completely, again a step in the journey to see if the spontaneity would come using deliberately chosen colour groups

 

Then, with the final piece, the beginning of a new direction.  With rough paint, imperfect shapes moving away from the solid mass, an allegory for Jan’s future work, reaching out for new ideas and fresh hope.

 

​