by Emily Oades
Contemporary and former painters are fundamental toward my current paintings. Indicating artists that have inspired me greatly to where I am today is essential when observing my natural progression in painting and perception of art today. These include Cecily Brown, Francis Bacon, Willem and Elaine de Kooning and Euan Uglow.
The crucial artist that has influenced the way I work is Cecily Brown. The first painting I came across of Brown’s collection was 1000 Thread Count (2004), which mesmerised my younger self. The vibrant warm colours across the painting that consume the entire surface with the fragmented, figurative shapes consuming the viewers' attention. This intimate moment shared between two unaware figures, performing this affectionate act is captured by Brown incredibly delicately, but with the harsh contrast of such dominating brushstrokes and colour. She perfectly encompasses a private sensation with careful consideration, capturing the movement of this activity with a forceful but gentle tone, the right balance that engrossed me and inspired me to continuously keep up to date with her new works, excited to see new paintings she produces. Other honourable mentions are Have you not known, Have you not heard (Triptych, 2011) and Combing the Hair III (2014).
A recent inspiration for the organic progression with my painting is Willem and Elaine de Kooning. Due to a current module I’m studying, I’ve been observing many Abstract Expressionists from 1950s and '60s America. Willem’s use of delicate colours combined with his ambitious figurative style, on the boundary between figurative and abstract, with one painting I admire being A Woman (Marilyn) (1965). Elaine de Koonings work, especially her Basketball series, captures fluidity in the movement of the figures, particularly in the painting Basketball #1-A, with the fusion of beautiful lavender colours combined with the complimentary colour yellow. Both artists perfectly encapsulate the variability of oil paint, infused with delicate and beautiful colours, encompassing fragmented and attentive paintings.