Journey of Self Painting

Sydney based artist Angus Martin uses his craft to capture the internal visions that arise from music, lyrics, poems and quotes. The deep emotional resonance of his works belies a simple approach to figurative art, with Angus relying on fragmented shapes to piece together cohesive forms. With a focus on the psychology behind colours, Angus balances contrasting shades to strengthen the impact of his work and evoke emotions from his audience. His paintings are highly symbolic, harmonious and unexpectedly emotional. The artist’s goal is to illicit an emotional connection that people can relate to from their own experiences, as every piece holds positive hidden meaning and symbolism which acts as a daily reinforcement to the viewer. "I think creating something that has its own story and meaning behind it is so special to someone that resonates with it, as it can uplift their space and mood whilst being a daily positive reminder of what they have been through, or where they are going." A self-described introvert, his pieces are inspired by music and a daydream state where his creativity is fuelled. Everything about Angus exudes that free-spirit energy you’d expect from a visual artist.’ “Everything happens for a reason — there are very few coincidences,” he reflects. “If you can start to recognise the reasons, you can find deeper meaning, not just in life, but in art too.” “I’ve always liked to explore the meanings behind my favourite songs, lyrics, quotes, and poems and started to draw these realizations. When I get lost in music and words, I see the song visualized into characters, poses, colours and emotions… Almost like a video clip that plays unintentionally, or how I imagine the song or quote/poem would look as a static drawing. I get transfixed and inspired by the mental imagery and translate these visuals onto paper accompanied by my interpretation of the symbolic meaning behind them and select colours that heighten the intended emotion behind the piece. During this process I get lost in the moment and sketch the shapes as I paint using brush lines and strokes as measurements which eventually form an arrangement of overlapped cohesive colour schemes and sharp fragmented shapes around an untouched paper line - Not a subsequent drawn line.... It’s a meditative process in which time slows down and nothing else matters but the pressure and alignment of each brush stroke.”