Art

From the artist: "Part of a series that I'm working on exploring how we perceive our surroundings. Taken from scenes of everyday city life, my brush strokes and colours are inspired by the senses and putting those senses on to paper. From the interest in the interaction with surroundings a love of more abstract work has been realised and that of my own interaction with the surroundings - From here, putting my own reactions to my feelings and senses into the brush strokes and marks that are being made." Alex James Bastable, Connections, 2020, mixed media on 300gsm paper, 22" x 30", 26" x 34" mounted Paper is mounted with apparent gaping and is priced to reflect the condition.

The bold colors and precise lines of Still Life #5 grab our attention. The heavily textured black paint anchors the painting and is balanced by the dark, but softer, strokes on the top right corner. The softer edges are continued in the light blue tones that melt into the canvas. These soft edges are a sharp contrast to the harsh lines found in the painting's black texture. Vivid primary colors also grab our attention in both the bottom right and top left corners. The lone secondary color is distinguished from the primary colors by its heavy texture. From the artist: "With my still life series, I'm stripping back right to the senses by doing the figurative drawings 'blind' and in a single line style. Then adding my colours and mark making as I interpret the composition. There's also symbolism added to the compositions, drawing on influences from 17th Century paintings." Alex James Bastable, Still Life #5, 2020, acrylic and mixed media on linen, 23.5" x 19.5"