“Hello! I am an art student, currently studying at Lasalle College of the Arts. While I was doing some research for inspiration for my final-year project, I stumbled across this blog and have been enamoured with your relief paintings ever since. I’m interested to know what your work process encompasses, and how you manage to create the elevation prominent in these relief paintings.- Susan Green”
Unfortunately, this comment was lost to my father and he is
no longer around to answer it. However, for those that are interested, I will
be explaining (to the best of my ability) the work process of my father in
creating his works.
My father was best known for his 2-dimensional Wave series
multihued paintings, which presented a bright wash of colours and transported
viewers into a transcendental state of colour euphoria. However, these
paintings were not created on a whim of artistic impulsivity, but were diligently
and meticulously planned. My father made miniature paintings on which he would
test and select the exact colours to use prior to executing the bigger-scaled
versions. This resulted in works that appear impeccably executed, with a highly
sophisticated finish. Below are two of his sketches, which give an insight to his meticulous process.
Untitled (Sketch 3), pencil on paper
Sketch for 'inverted Y' painting
Addressing the commenter’s interest in my father’s relief
paintings, he accomplished the transition from 2-dimensionality to the
3-dimensional by means of inserting shaped aluminium armature under the canvas
that was to be stretched over this support, in order to provide a new
dimension. Below are a few photographs which depict this process:
Side view construction of his Wave paintings
Back view of Wave relief painting
Side view of Wave relief painting