Poseidon Calling The Ocean Painting

Inspired originally by sculptures found in one of the weird and evocative sculpture graveyards in Bali, this is a large and visually striking painting. Part of a series in which I limited my palette in order to harness the power and beauty of harmonious, complementary colors, in this case, shades of red and green only. The calm, healing, restful nature of green is enhanced by the hot splendor and what Rudolf Steiner characterises as the “nobility “of red. Poseidon, God of the Sea, brother of Zeus here abandons his customary three pointed trident and takes up a conch shell that becomes a shankha or trumpet which he uses to call all the creatures of the oceans he rules. As in most of my work, oil paint on canvas provides depth and plasticity. My hope is that the harmonization of lines, shapes and most of all colors will evoke and stimulate a crossover of the senses from sight to sound, assisted by the image of the conch shell, the original horn-trumpet of ancient Hindu and Buddhist hero epics. The conch shell is renowned for producing a deeply haunting, sometimes terrifying sound. In mythology it is akin to the bugle and thought to bring terror to the enemy. Its blast is believed to banish evil spirits, avert natural disasters, and scare away poisonous creatures. As with most of my work, and indeed with surrealism itself, numerous interpretations are possible. A main underlying thematic base is always suggested in the title. Both consciously and subconsciously my paintings are imbued with multiple meanings. Deeply personal passions and fixations and universal concerns are simultaneously communicated via a synchronistic spark that passes between and unites them. Whatever the artist’s personal interests, attractions or obsessions are, important art also reflects and expresses its time. Much of my work, including ‘Poseidon Calling the Oceans’ is provoked and created during an unparalleled time of man-made catastrophes, such as avoidable climate change, the growing nuclear threat, mass persecution and murder because of racial, philosophical, ethnic, tribal, differences and the bloody polarization of religions. My paintings should, and will echo and reflect these realities. As Kandinsky said, true art cannot be separated from it’s time. Poseidon is one of the most widely loved and well known mythological God-heroes of all. But here he might be imbibing us with beautiful sights and sounds from an exquisite red and green harmonious place filled with wisdom, courage and majesty. Or he may be calling to us from inside an ocean of blood. Perhaps he speaks to different viewers in very different ways. My hope is that the painting and the viewer resonate and mutually communicate in some way.

Painting:Oil on Canvas

Original:One-of-a-kind Artwork

Size:78.7 W x 59.1 H x 1.5 D in

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