Adding and subtracting.
This painting started with a rough surface and a very loose sense of direction. I enjoy moving away from the purely descriptive, but the memory of so many coastal villages around the Med is always so vivid from our sailing days. So, conveying the general atmosphere of a small harbour in Italy, Greece, or indeed Malta is almost intuitive.
The process became a cycle: thick but non-directional impasto and then scumbled paint on top. Some paint was scraped off, so some layers survived; some didn’t. But that’s the beauty of it, the surface keeps a record. Earlier decisions aren’t gone; they’re just sitting under the skin, partly hidden. Colours meet by touching rather than blending. In a way, you’re left with a painting that carries its own history, a memory of everything that was added and everything that was taken away.
Does knowing the ‘history’ of the layers, the additions, and the subtractions change how you see the final surface? I’m curious to know your perspective.”
