Darkness has been where a lot of my work has come from. Not in a Danish noir or Peaky Blinders way but literally capturing the light or working in the dark. In my early days various dining tables were my only supports for small works. I originally worked in pastel as it was easy to transport, has no smell and is easy to clean up. This is one of a couple of images I created from being in New York as the new millennium arrived – capturing the ticker tape fall.
So another artist’s similar style work caught my eye in response to a competition to write a blog. This picture of New York at New Year at the millenium is one of my pastel paintings. I often work in hard conte or colourful soft pastels at life drawing. Artfinder have a selection of my finished life drawing (nude) works for sale and three cycle racing pastels including T’Tour capturing Mark Cavendish abow.
It’s been fun to look around the ArtFinder online marketplace where I have a shop to look at other artists’s work to find an ArtFinder gem. I thought that I’d choose either a sculptor or printmaker as those are areas I don’t work in. However as soon as I spotted Damion’s work, after following a comment made by him on one of the forum posts, I had to put fingers to keyboard. Enjoy exploring his work. Here’s my blog piece which came second.
Artfinder Gem by Kathryn Sassall
Darkness – journeys by night are lit by the beauty of moving headlights, pulsating shop signs, the glow of the setting sun or the brightness of the rising moon. Driving has been such a big part of my life seeing these pastel paintings of roads and cities at night capturing the feeling of movement and mood makes me smile. The atmospheric images of darkness that Damion Maxwell has posted on ArtFinder have made me think about so many moments from my life over the last 18 months. The bright pastel work is wonderfully drawn on dark paper.
Observation
Damion is observing what’s around him and capturing it. Such a simple thing to say, but a really challenging thing to do, when you’ve chosen nighttime for the subjects. I love the way he appears to have painted with fast and free strokes of soft bright pastels. The perspective leads me through the pictures, but I just have to stop off several times on the way to look at other bits of action. Vibrant colours are singing off of the black background. A fleeting moment captured, giving an impression of the rush and steady stream of traffic moving.
The darkness really comes alive in “Drama on the hard shoulder” which appears to be just a random shot of vehicles travelling along the road. However, it’s one of those paintings which you can enjoy from a distance but you really should look closer. You gradually see more and more. So many individual stories – who is in what vehicle? Where have they been? Where are they going? Will the traveller broken down reach their destination? All the time the blue overhead signs calling my eyes to the back of the picture.
Exploration
It’s great to then read that Damion is self-taught and still exploring mediums and styles. Interestingly his day job, which I’m sure is also very often a night job, is as a firefighter. Has that flicker of light in the darkness shaped his choice of subjects I wonder? To start with a dark ‘canvas’ and create light on it is an additional challenge. However, it does bring with it a sense of freedom to layer colours. Drawing light from the darkness. Then I read the descriptions and Damion has a good sense of humour and loves what he is creating. I think that shines through.
The latest series of pastel works that Damion has uploaded to ArtFinder include another magical image. He’s captured the rainy pleasure of “Late Night Shopping”. Those enticing windows glowing in the darkness, bright jewels of colour. the shoppers under umbrellas on a grey rainy night. Still out there enjoying the excitement of the thought of getting a bargain and probably a cup of coffee too. The choice of colours in this picture is lovely. Sherbetty yellows and pinks with a touch of orange and tourquoise blue making it shimmer. I am really looking forward to seeing more pieces.
