Songs of the Ancient Earth

It started with a voyage.

A childhood dream to cross the Atlantic Ocean in a ship, just as my Grandma had done.

To experience being mid-ocean, surrounded by sea and sky, and to better appreciate the sheer size of planet Earth.

The North Atlantic Ocean looks dark agains the cream and grey sky with flashes of sunlight on the horizon.
Whatever the weather ~  Clear skies  ~  Calm sea  ~  Sunset  ~  Moonrise  ~  Darkness  ~  Pink skies  ~  Sunrise  ~  Rain  ~  Mist  ~  Fog  ~  Storm  ~ I always felt safe
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Ocean Deep ll uses sepia, cerulean blue and gold to create an abstract piece looking down with areas of deep green through deep blue, and accents of gold as shafts of light or bubbles and the possible definition of a coastline. Acrylic on canvas, 61 x 91cm
Ocean Deep ll, 2023, Acrylic on canvas, 61 x 91cm
Ocean Deep l uses sepia and cerulean blue to create light and dark shafts and shadows, against a central form that looks a little like a whale’s tail and changes colour from blue through green to dark magenta. Acrylic on canvas, 61 x 91cm
Ocean Deep l, 2023, Acrylic on canvas, 61 x 91cm
Immemorial Waters is situated mid-Atlantic and shows five silhouettes - benevolent beings - against a graded background of deep blue at the top, via turquoise to warm red. At the base is a reclining figure, in carmine and created with linen thread. Acrylic on canvas, overall size 240 x 240cm in three horizontal canvases, each 80 x 240cm.
Immemorial Waters, 2023, Acrylic on canvas (triptych), 240 x 240cm

 

I sailed from Southampton to New York at the end of 2022.  The voyage was an unforgettable experience.  An ending and a beginning.

It has taken much time to integrate my experiences mid-ocean.  The afterglow resides within me, and I am forever changed.  

 

 

‘Songs of the Ancient Earth’ is a phrase which resonates deeply with me.

It evokes the past and its relevance to us today; of a continuum, and of hope.

Of how we can reach back to find ourselves; to pick up the threads left by our ancestors, and to re-weave them into the present.

And thus to sing the songs once more.

 

 

I hope you will find songs within my paintings, and that perhaps they can help you remember some of your own ancient wisdom.

Hope after the Cyclone has swirls of dark blue and gold with the paint dripping to create a grid. The left side is darker, and the right, brighter with more gold, all against a paler blue background, and was created after the cyclones hit Hawkes Bay in New Zealand in 2023. Acrylic on BFK Rives paper, on board, 76 x 112 cm
Hope after the Cyclone, 2023, Acrylic on BFK Rives paper on wood, 76 x 112cm
Floating Ciphers started with a background of vermillion, over which a shadow falls, only to be disrupted by drops and splashes of reds, greys and silver, giving an overall mottled effect within which symbols - ancient or new - you decide - can be deciphered. Acrylic on canvas, 120 x 120cm
Floating Ciphers, 2024, Acrylic on canvas, 120 x 120cm
Blown Away with its background of gold ochre, is layered with grids in buff titanium, sepia and indigo. Finally a figure-like form appears, being blown across the surface. Acrylic on Moulin de Larroque paper, 50 x 50cm
Blown Away, 2024, Acrylic on Moulin de Larroque paper, 50 x 50cm
Hot Jazz has a deep pink background, with an indigo grid covered by woven and knotted linen thread, itself painted indigo and partially covered with pale violet. The title comes from the shapes within the weaving looking like clarinet and saxophone keys. Acrylic and linen thread on Moulin de Larroque paper, 50 x 50cm
Hot Jazz, 2024, Acrylic and linen thread on Moulin de Larroque paper, 50 x 50cm
Drifting Star sees a five pointed star emerge, like an indigo and green flower with a pale yellow centre, out of a pale yellow-green evanescence, all against a deep indigo sky. Acrylic on Moulin de Larroque paper, 50 x 50cm
Drifting Star, 2024, Acrylic on Moulin de Larroque paper, 50 x 50cm
Harvest Moon is a rich red, orange and pink Moon on an ultramarine blue background. The Moon itself is partially hidden by a golden veil of woven linen thread. Acrylic and linen thread on canvas, 50 x 40cm
Harvest Moon, 2024, Acrylic and linen thread on canvas, 50 x 40cm
La Danse de la Rose was inspired by a real rose I see when walking. Its buds are intense vermillion, which open to a rich pink that pales as it ages, beautifully. Acrylic on Moulin de Larroque paper, 84 x 84cm
La Danse de la Rose, 2024, Acrylic on Moulin de Larroque paper, 84 x 84cm
Le Pouvoir de Trois, 2024, Acrylic on Moulin de Larroque paper, 50 x 50cm
Energetic Burst uses a background of vermillion, which is all but covered by horizontal waves of blues, as a cylindrical form hovers above, revolving and bursting with energy. Acrylic on Moulin de Larroque paper, 56 x 107cm
Energetic Burst, 2025, Acrylic on Moulin de Larroque paper, 56 x 107cm

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