Sanguine

Sanguine is an abstract painting of 120 × 120 cm in which colour takes the leading role. The work feels energetic, expressive and warm at the same time. In the underpainting, I visualised the brain’s tendency to think in boxes and categories – something you discover when viewing the work from different angles. A structured and recognisable foundation. The layers above it create the opposite movement: freer, looser and filled with colour. A kind of release, without completely abandoning what came before. That balance is important to me. Structure gives direction, but it is the space beyond it that creates movement and growth. I translated that tension onto the canvas, partly through the use of rose gold metal leaf. It adds warmth and catches the light in a subtle way. The painting is built up from rich reds and rose tones, combined with different acrylic paints and custom pigment mixtures. Because of these many layers, new details continue to appear – some immediately visible, others only emerging as the light changes. Sanguine moves between structure and freedom, between thinking and feeling. A work that has presence, yet can also become quiet when the light softens and the metal leaf reflects a warm glow. The painting is stretched on a 4.5 cm deep aluminium frame and can be displayed without an external frame. The edges are fully painted, allowing the image to continue around the sides.