Oil on canvas
2024

This painting shows Nicola as she cuts orange hearts from pieces of paper, in preparation for an event as part of refugee week, after a long session at The Laing Art Gallery in Newcastle.

Making Hearts is the piece in which I have really expressed the shadow as pure red, doing away with the notion of cold shadows. The bold red draws attention to the action of cutting the paper, following the gaze of our subject to the task at hand. 

Within the surroundings, the colours have been flattened considerably. The walls and window behind taking on a uniform beige and blue respectively. The open cupboard down, hinting at a further room is simplified info basic shapes of red and blue, continuing the use of red as shadow.

This painting was included in my first solo exhibition Like Ships in the Night.