WOODLANDS IN WAX SEASCAPES ON SILVER
A Solo Exhibition by Donna Goold
29th March – 19th May 2023
Donna Goold’s paintings are an exploration of colour and light. In this new body of work, led by the differing materials she has chosen to use, her paintings have taken two distinct directions: Dark, mysterious woodlands captured forever in wax and vibrant sunsets expressed in oil on aluminium.
Painting with molten wax, known as encaustic painting, originated in Greece over 2000 years ago. It is a very stable and long-lasting medium; examples from A.D 100 can be seen in The British Museum, where the colours still glow vibrantly today.
Donna has adapted this ancient technique to her own unique way of working. In these new woodland scenes, she risks losing the entire image by re-heating it after all the work is complete so that the painting completely liquifies into one image. Once cured, she then meticulously polishes the surface to enhance the colours and reveal their radiance.
Due to the complexity of the process, the scale of the Woodlands in Wax series is limited, indeed the largest piece measures just 34cm x 34cm. To retain this intimacy, they have been finished in a deep black box frame.
In contrast, her seascape paintings are large, exuberant works on sheets of aluminium. Choosing to reject paint brushes this time, Donna works purely by hand with high quality pigment oil sticks. This gives her complete control of the surface, and with even a very soft stroke the paint can be moved around to reveal layers beneath. Tiny details and fingerprints that are left behind and only reveal themselves in certain light, literally give a personal touch to the painting.
Finally, they have been framed in a wide, white moulding – the ultimate entrapment of the colours she has chosen, the pure white surround giving the final amplification of their beauty yet also giving them the room that they now need to breathe.
EXHIBITION WORK
