Figuring Light

'Evolver' by Rebecca Partridge.

When i went to the Figuring Light exhibition, my eyes were immediately drawn to Rebecca Partridges' work. The five different pieces that i saw were all quite similar, they all created the same effect. This particular piece uses rectangular shapes and different shades of colour. Your eyes are immediately drawn towards the centre of the piece, where the colours are more vivid. I like the different colours she had used and also like the shapes are becoming larger and more spread out the further out of the picture you look.

By having the shapes getting lighter it makes the centre part look much whiter, which attracts attention and stands out more, the colour around the edge of the piece looks a lot duller and almost grey. By having the colours brighter toward the middle and having such a large contrast with the shades towards the edge it has made our eyes see the white differently. I believe having each side of the shape different colours also creates a good effect. The rectangles are also partly transparent, this means other shapes are visible through other rectangles, this allows the artist to create the effect of the shapes being drawn out from the centre, as if they were moving and turning outwards from the middle.

There are also a set of paintings that have a black background, these also prove effective at drawing the eye to the centre of the piece by using darker shades toward the middle, however, the colours do not appear as vivid due to the darker background.

'These are not only paintings about colour, expansiveness, synaesthesia, or universality; they are also about the body. I suppose I’m unfashionable nowadays because I like the idea of tactile energy being contained in the act of physical creation. When you paint it feels like you’re making a living thing. That may seem like an exaggeration, but that’s what it feels like.'

Rebecca Partridge

http://www.rebeccapartridge.com/