This is my first post
so I’ve decided to talk about three landscape paintings I particularly like and
created by John O’Grady, an Irish artist who lives in Provence.
John O’Grady relishes the process of painting from memory and
capturing an atmosphere that can take you right back to the place you have a special
connection with even though this place in the artist’s head may not be specific.
His choice of colours and tendency towards abstraction give
the work a sense of the magical tinged with melancholy.
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| Murmur in the Trees,
2012 (5" x 7", oil on panel) |
When I get up at dawn, it’s a joy to see the sun rising and bathing
the medieval stones of the village I live in with a honey glow while blue-grey
shadows add drama to the setting.
Shapes and forms are not quite in focus yet and this in-between
stage suggests possibilities.
This time of day has a fleeting quality and a quietness John
O’Grady captured in Murmur in the Trees.
This painting of an Irish pathway dappled with a cool light carries the first feelings of warmth.
When viewing the painting, I am transported back to Ireland on
an early morning walk when the air still carries the dampness of the night and I
start feeling the first rays of the sun on my arms and face. My eyes blink when
they catch the bright light peering through the trees, blinding me for a moment
or two and it feels good to be in the countryside, close to nature.
Blue is the dominant colour, ranging from cool blues to warm
violet-blue shades that accentuate the solidity of the trees lining the path to
bring an atmosphere of ease and comfort while the yellow of the sun peering
through creates a delicate mosaic on the lane.
The other yellow marks brighten the painting and balance the result.
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| Murmur in the Trees
III, 2014 (10" x 10", oil on panel) |
This is another Murmur in the Trees painting though the feel
is different from the first one.
The tall dark trees with a spooky blue otherworldly mist in
the undergrowth dominate the painting.
They make uo a dense forest but the light, well- trodden
path running alongside and the brightness of the skyscape dispels any hint there
is something ominous about to happen.
It’s magical, ready
to use as a backdrop to a fairy tale.
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Clouds in the River
Rhône, 2014
(10"x10", oil on panel) |
This painting with a gorgeous turquoise colour was triggered
by a memory of a trip that the artist took to Avignon when the Rhône river’s
glassy still water provided the perfect mirror effect to reflect the skyscape.
It’s a fun painting that plays with notions of reality and perception.
What do we see, is it real?
The artist says in response
to a comment on his blog:
“Reality is often doubtful for me and probably for other people
too. Except maybe I spend everyday exploring visual realities. Perhaps the
reflection is another reality within the one painting.”
When I first saw this, I thought it was an abstract painting.
It’s a bit of a disconcerting perspective that felt
disorienting. And then you realise what you are looking at and you are filled
with awe. The high horizon line and the
bronze trees frame the front part of the painting while you feel as if you are
in the middle of the river, almost eye to eye with the water so you can see the
large cloudscape before you.
It’s a rather small painting and I’d love to
experience a version of it in a large format.
To see more work by John O’Grady, please visit his site www.johnogradypaintings.com
I hope you enjoyed your visit. Please leave a comment.
I hope you enjoyed your visit. Please leave a comment.
