Sham Castle, Bath 1 Painting

My practice is based on the thematic continuum and investigates the relationship between architecture and space and its ownership of the landscape. The creative process through which I work allows my drawings and paintings to reflect the honesty and history of their making. Using acrylic paint on canvas, wooden panel or paper, I respond to structures in the landscape with which I feel a connection, both aesthetically and emotionally. They include such structures as the bridge, the ruined church and the railway station. I initially work on site, spontaneously recording my response to the subject into drawing books. Together with digital images, these drawings constitute my primary resources, from which a body of work evolves. Energetic, expressive mark making and a vibrant colour palette encourage the paintings to develop autonomy of their own as they move closer into abstraction. Drawing and painting are equally important in my work and through the activity of drawing with eyes closed I seek a new dimension of creativity. The unpredictable combination of wax pastel and water on paper produces drawings that enjoy a freedom from the critical eye. These drawings possess an independence that invite the viewer to seek the subject’s essence, rather than a literal interpretation. Such influences feed into my paintings encouraging them to teeter enticingly between reality and abstraction. beryldesmond.blog.com www.degreeArt.com