Spring Equinox, acrylic on paper on panel, 40 x 40 cm, 2020

There are some very dark hellebores flowering in the garden outside out flats at the moment and they’re absolutely entrancing. They’re so dark they’re almost black, but they also have dusty delicate blooms of blue and pink over their petals that’s hard to capture in photos or in paint. There are spring bulbs flowering on my balcony and seeds germinating in the bright warm sunshine we’ve had here in Berlin this week. But the burgeoning spring and dazzling light doesn’t fit the mood at the moment as the news is so unsettling and upsetting.

I wanted to make an image including the hellebores but it’s turned into a rather dreamy, unreal scene, where the usual rules regarding scale, light and weight don’t seem to apply. This feels quite fitting at the moment as I try to take on board what’s happening.

I collaged this image together from elements made separately. It may sound strange to say this, but I don’t really like working in this way; I prefer collage when it’s using random papers juxtaposed together to make an image, rather than painting specific objects separately and then stitching them together on the panel. I find that some of the joy of collage is lost when I paint a flower or a leaf and then cut it out and add it to another image. I prefer the energy and surprise of using papers painted spontaneously with a variety of colours and textures rather than purposefully making specific elements separately. But, that’s just the way this image went, and, in the end, I think it added to the sense of spooky unreality so i was happy just to go with it.

Here are a few details, which illustrate the collaging of the various elements a bit more clearly:

All the best to anybody reading this, hope you and all your loved ones stay safe and well over the coming weeks 🙂