Airmail Collage

This artwork, a collage, (my 24th in a dedicated series based on Vauban) uses pieces of angled strips cut from prepared sheets of red, dark blue and black Canson Mi-Teinte 160 gms papers applied randomly to a pale blue Canson backing of the same type. The angled strips were then applied to a pre-painted 115 x 75 cm stretched canvas. These applied coloured strips were derived from the internationally recognised border patterns of standard printed airmail envelopes… hence the title “Airmail”. All my recent artworks using painted or applied elements of carefully drawn angles are based on the works of Maréchal Vauban, or Sébastien Le Prestre de Vauban (1633-1707), who is considered one the of the greatest military engineers of all time. In his life he was responsible for the fortification of over 160 places in France… but his major contribution to warfare was his methods of attack, which revolutionised siege warfare. However, the shapes and angles of his defensive walls surrounding many French towns and seaports have influenced the design of my more recent artworks.