BLUE NINE (2026) Original Acrylic Painting by Frank Barnes

“Blue Nine” is an acrylic and encaustic painting on canvas 100cms H x 100 cms W x 3cms D. The painting explores the symbolism of the number nine. The number 9 symbolises completion, wholeness, spiritual awakening, and the end of a cycle to prepare for a new beginning. Because it is the highest single-digit number in the decimal system, it carries the culmination of all the wisdom and lessons that came before it. In numerology, the number 9 is powerful. It represents completion, although not a final ending, like the fulfillment of one cycle so that you can prepare to initiate the next one. It’s a recognition of life’s ongoing ebb and flow. The number 9 shows you’ve lived and learned and you’re engaged with living your life in a meaningful, conscious manner and you’re setting rewarding goals. I hope that is the case. The painting illustrates a minimalist approach, creating imagery using the smallest possible number of elements. It is an approach that strips things down to their most essential components without declaring a defined purpose or outcome. The painting is purposefully equivocal. It is intentionally ambiguous and symbolises the removal of narrative, ornament, and decoration to leave only the foundational structure.
I work over the primed canvas using brushes, knives, cloths and squeegees to manage impasto and diluted layers of acrylic paint and adding cold wax at different stages. It is a continuous process of ‘correction’. At different stages I add cold wax encaustic, plaster and various other collage materials which are mixed into the paint to create heavier textured surfaces. It is through a process of layering, and improvisation which in turn results in the image resolving itself. The painting is purposefully equivocal. It is intentionally ambiguous.
My work continues to be inspired by reference to abstract expressionists John Hoyland, Barnett Newman, Gillian Ayres , Barbara Rae, Franz Kline, Robert Motherwell, Mark Rothko and Richard Diebenkorn.
The painting is shipped in a robust custom-made cardboard crate (same as those used to transport large screens). The painting is bubble wrapped to protect the canvas. Further wrapping is made with corrugated card. A wooden frame is placed inside the cardboard crate to preserve the structural strength of the packaging. Each painting is insured to its sale value. Shipping costs within the U.K. take into consideration weight and insurance. U.K. shipping costs for this artwork are estimated at approximately £50.

Materials used:

Acrylic and encaustic on canvas

Details:

• Acrylic painting on Canvas
• One of a kind artwork
• Size: 100 x 100 x 3cm (unframed) / 100 x 100cm (actual image size)
• Ready to hang
• Signed on the front
• Style: Geometric
• Subject: Abstract and non-figurative