THE POWER OF NOTHINGNESS

As a painter, I have a longstanding interest in the border between light and shadow. In my work, I look for this invisible line and often manage to find it. This pursuit is exciting and inspirational. It is easy to paint a border where the horizon meets the sky or where land meets sea; but I am more into painting subtler borders, such as nightfall, twilight, or a summer night sky. The edge of light and dark can be definite and sharp or soft and fluid. This line can be hard to draw. The more I look for it, the more I realise that nothing is as certain as it sometimes seems.

Once I was halfway up a hill, when a mist began to fall, shrouding everything in a milky haze, and I felt as though I had entered a huge void. There and then, I experienced a massive rush of power – the Power of Nothingness.

One fears emptiness, much like one dreads solitude. But perceiving the beauty of nothingness, learning to love it and trying to approach it with a broad tonal range is where I see my painter’s task and challenge as a painter. Sometimes three tones are enough, another time ten seems too little, and then, all at once, there is a depth and a sense of completion.

I work in the classical way, with oil on canvas. I prefer the oils and accessories such as broad brushes and spatulas produced by Italian company Maimeri, which I use to apply several layers of paint and achieve translucent coatings. I also use oil paints with a metallic sheen.