3. Art is Emotion

Art is emotion. It reminds us of things, places and people in our lives that have left an impression. A blue flower might remind us of nan’s forget-me-nots that blanketed her garden or a scene of a particular beach could bring back memories of childhood summer holidays, where you got engaged or married. I love to see a customer’s face when that light bulb flicks on when the memory kicks in. You can see the joy, happiness and sometimes pain all at once.

But it's not only the viewing of the art that is an emotion. Art is a medium in which feelings and emotions can be expressed, communicated and explored. Symbols, shapes and colours can all symbolise specific emotions - the way the lines are drawn, the shapes chosen and the colours used. Art acts as a powerful link for emotional exploration, for both the creator and the viewer.

I love to paint things in colours that are not their own. By that I mean a blue tree or pink water. I like to add pops of colour to give an artwork depth, focal points and to add emotions. I also deliberately don't use sharp edges so both soften the look of the artwork but add calm. Sharp and jagged lines are not the emotion that I want to convey in my artwork.

Colour also plays a big part in my art. I am an intuitive artist so often I just choose a colour as I go, but it has to be the right colour. I ask myself does it change the mood, soften the look or move the focal point of the artwork. It also needs to work harmoniously with the other colours. If the answer is yes then that colour is the right choice.

This artwork, West Beach Sunset, is the perfect example of this.

The original photo was bright yellows and oranges against navy skies and dark purple sand. The sunset was incredible! So I painted those colours. But it just wasn’t doing it for me. It’s didn’t look or feel right. I knew I had to have the purple to mimic the dark and moody sky, and I had to have the orange to show the incredible sun setting, but the sun; the yellow wasn’t right.

One of my favourite colour combinations is pink, orange and purple. They just work so well together, and all have the same primary colour undertone – red. So there we have it, pink was the answer for the sun. And it was the right decision. The artworks has come up fantastically and I couldn’t be more proud of it.

Colours also play a big role in emotions. In this artwork you can feel the angry emotion in the sky, and the warm reflection on the sand on the right hand side of the painting. The colours in the sky could also be interpreted as sad, but the purple could be hopeful. The orange tones could mean aggression and tension (in the sky) but also warmth, strength and it symbolises determination. It’s interesting how everything comes together with the colours, emotions and shapes, creating a calming yet dark sunset sky.

Art is more that 'just art'. It is emotion.