Charlotte Edsell British, b. 1971
Eye Spy, 2021
Oil on canvas
15.2 x 30.5 cm
Copyright The Artist
On a road trip from Scotland, a children’s game of ‘Eye Spy’ sees walls and landscapes flash by in snapshots, simple shapes that appear slightly flattened when viewed from a...
On a road trip from Scotland, a children’s game of ‘Eye Spy’ sees walls and landscapes flash by in snapshots, simple shapes that appear slightly flattened when viewed from a car window.
The initial impetus for this body of work came from drawing during lockdown, when Charlotte became immersed in her surroundings and found a particular interest in the hidden energy that informs all living things. Feeling closely connected to nature herself, she considered the relationship between humans, animals and the land, all of which live according to their own rhythms, side-by-side in continuous flux. Considering the agency of her surrounding landscape, Charlotte’s paintings are focused on the senses and explore the form, colour and texture of both the seen and unseen elements that inform and comprise our surrounding landscapes.
Laying down thin ‘veils’ of colour punctuated by direct marks she creates ‘optical vaults’ through which meaning can be accessed – “the last blast of sun before autumn, hints of animal and flora, landscape and structures as the world of nature merges with life.” She describes her process as ‘live’ painting; a risky technique that forces her to be in the moment with her painting and responsive to changes that occur beyond her control, just as mankind cannot control life through will alone and is always subject to nature.
The initial impetus for this body of work came from drawing during lockdown, when Charlotte became immersed in her surroundings and found a particular interest in the hidden energy that informs all living things. Feeling closely connected to nature herself, she considered the relationship between humans, animals and the land, all of which live according to their own rhythms, side-by-side in continuous flux. Considering the agency of her surrounding landscape, Charlotte’s paintings are focused on the senses and explore the form, colour and texture of both the seen and unseen elements that inform and comprise our surrounding landscapes.
Laying down thin ‘veils’ of colour punctuated by direct marks she creates ‘optical vaults’ through which meaning can be accessed – “the last blast of sun before autumn, hints of animal and flora, landscape and structures as the world of nature merges with life.” She describes her process as ‘live’ painting; a risky technique that forces her to be in the moment with her painting and responsive to changes that occur beyond her control, just as mankind cannot control life through will alone and is always subject to nature.