Summer Spectrum

It’s hot - forty degrees in fact. A temperature which is bound to set the blood racing. Red. A bit of blue might cool us down.

But there is a lot more to colour than hue. In spite of the present heat wave, everyone who has spent any time in Blighty will know that August, allegedly the peak of the British summer holiday season, will tell you that this can also be one of the wettest months of the year. If it weren’t so then we would not live in quite such a green and pleasant land. That said, my lawn is currently turning a particular shade of yellowy brown; not including the bits the dog has dug up: these are a slightly darker shade of earth brown; a bit like the type of brown that one may have found on a Mk1 Spitfire during the Battle of Britain. And here I am reminded of the crisp aquamarine blue sky, filled with criss cross vapour trails that wove together the story of mortals locked in winged combat.

So there really is more to the summer spectrum than red and other associated ‘hot’ colours. Evening golds, lush greens and luminescent turquoises are all there if you know where to look.

The paintings featured in this show are all about light and luminosity as well as saturation and haze. They are based on images from recent trips to Lundy Island, the Isle of Man, and the Calf of Man. You never know what you are going to get when you start out on a new creative project, but here they are. Six new paintings that tell another chapter in the story of my ongoing fascination with colour, light and landscape.

They will be on show at Twenty-Twenty Gallery in Ludlow from 23rd July to 27th August.

Gallery website details here:https://www.twenty-twenty.co.uk/2022/summer-spectrum23rd-july-to-27th-august-2022/