Above- 'Recollection II'. Acrylic on canvas 50 x 60cm, framed in a solid wooden frame.
Part of a series of work exploring memories of the landscape and the wonder of the colour green.
I've always loved green. Green clothes have always had a permanent place in my wardrobe. From the soft sage green hues through to the punchy pthalo greens, the colour has so much to offer. We have a lot of green in our home too, we love Farrow and Ball 'Card Room Green', it's beautiful alongside earthly tones and natural materials.
Green is very much a colour that triggers memories; times spent outdoors in nature where there is never simply one shade of green. It can be associated with feelings of harmony, relaxation and positivity.
How do you feel about mint green? It's tipped as one of the leading design trend colours for 2023. I love it alongside sage green, grey and earthy tones. Mint green is such a beautiful, fresh and energising shade and I'm planning to use more of it in my work this year. If you are interested, there are some great examples of how to bring mint green into your home in the House Beautiful article below. https://www.housebeautiful.com/room-decorating/colors/g1185/mint-rooms/
Above 'Viridian Estuary', acrylic on wood. 46 x 46cm, framed in a contemporary white St Ive's frame. Here I've paired deep greens with turquoise and muted soft pink- it's a really subtle combination that I came across completely by chance.
Above, Recollection I. Acrylic on canvas 60 x 50cm.
These predominantly green paintings have a real sense of calm about them. I've loved mixing up the shades, using a a range of secondary and primary colours. Throughout the paintings, I've used a touch of pthalo turquoise- a new colour for me. It's quite strong so I've tried to be very light handed with it- less is definitely more. Alongside mixing my own colours, I'm a huge fan of Le Franc Bourgeois pre mixed greens, in particular Stil de Grain and Verdaccio. These paints are actually vinyl and give a consistent matt finish, they are highly pigmented and really vibrant. I've used these in my recent 'Recollection' paintings which I will be showing at this year's Leigh Art Trail in July.
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Thanks for reading and please get in touch and tell me your thoughts on the colour green!
hello@clairehankeyartist.com