Susan Rhodes
Painting is a discipline I continue to develop much like meditation or a mantra. My methods are mostly self-taught through a journey of trial and error, correction and chance-discovery. I have a creative background as a qualified interior designer, though it is in oil paint and canvas I find my greatest challenges and triumphs, which create my drive and in turn keep me stimulated as an artist and an individual.
I work from my own photography collection, sometimes changing or adapting parts to create the desired finish, and sometimes not, and usually increasing the size to make a more powerful statement. I love the concept of taking an ordinary every day ‘thing’ or subject and glorifying it as a painting, as this gives the item(s) or scene a prominence which may otherwise go unconsidered or under-valued. In taking time to examine the normal and the insignificant, a greater world of detail, energy and meaning which may otherwise have escaped us, is brought forth to awareness.
My finished pieces vary in subject matter according to my current interests, but the style I am refining is mostly consistent and signatory. Taking inspiration from photorealist painters, attention is paid to detail and depth of field to enhance this photographic effect. I create and apply different techniques such as using small brushes for in-focus details and larger fan bushes dragged sideways across layers of paint to obtain blur. Colour experimentation is also important as it helps to draw the eye to significant areas in the composition, and I sometimes alter colours to create different moods.