Art Gallery
The paintings in the Art gallery were created by RQ, MH or RQ and MH. Each painting has a short accompanying text, which provides some background. This is intended to help the viewer make better sense of the painting and so its meaning. There is also an expression of the meaning that the painting holds for us. More expressions of additional or alternative meanings are welcome. They should be communicated by e-mail or via the Art Forum. Suitable meanings will be posted.
CASTEL
RQ and MH – Oil on canvas, 80x50cms. £100 and £25 for high-quality prints.
The painting is an abstraction of the transformation of a castle into a hotel. It was a project, undertaken by RQ, who is an architect. The visual meaning of the painting is embodied in the architecture-like shapes and their 3-dimensional suggestiveness. Together, these constitute the content and the structural foreground. The abstraction is in two parts and proceeds from the edges to the centre of the painting, varying in scale. The colours are mute; but still expressive, especially the reds and the yellows. Darker colours are used for emphasis of shapes and for the brightness of the colours.
The abstract meaning of the painting is one of transformation/transmutation and more generally change. The latter, however, appears calm and orderly, rather than abrupt or revolutionary.
The painting is intended to be a repost to the so-called Abstract Expressionism School (albeit deeply admired by RQ and MH). The school’s paintings, although expressive, are not an abstraction of anything and so not true abstractions. The school might be better named Non-representational Expressionism. Although tongue-in-cheek, RQ and MH consider themselves to be joint founder members of the new school of Expressive Abstractionism. New members are welcome and should make contact by e-mail or via the Art Forum. Some accompanying rationale for joining would be welcome.