Raymond Shaw

My paintings are abstract, with the underlying structure of early modernism. I like the power of icons and devotional paintings, as well as the painterly approach of expressionism, whether of the American or German schools. I tend to like the approach of European art and the confidence of American painting. I make positive paintings that depict universal ideals, while striving for simplicity in form and colour; paintings that reflect a better world for all and have an element of beauty and mystery to them. I hope my paintings have an initial appeal based upon form and colour, but that the paintings then reveal something more.

My influences vary and range from ancient Egyptian to post-Modern. The most inspiring painters for me are Kandinsky, Rothko, Newman, Motherwell, Miró, Hoffman, Creme, Picasso, and Chagall.

“Form and meaning give me the excuse to play with colour, my great love, and in the mix, a painting comes to life that occupies a space in the pictorial world.”