Original artwork description:

I created Dancing Poppies as a celebration of movement, colour and that fleeting, dreamlike moment when nature seems to shimmer with life. Inspired by Keats’ words:

"Moreover, through the dancing poppies stole
A breeze, most softly lulling to my soul;
And shaping visions all about my sight
Of colours, wings, and bursts of spangly light"
Endymion, John Keats

I wanted these poppies to feel as if they are swaying in light, caught mid-dance, their petals glowing and dissolving into bursts of colour in the evening light. Crisp and glowing, the shapes form a carefully orchestrated rhythmic composition.

A monotype is a one-off hand-made print, just as unique as a painting. I used rollers and dabbers to spread out ink on a smooth plastic board then made marks with a cloth and other tools. The ink was transferred to the paper using a hand-operated printing press. I built up layers of over-lapping colous by printing several times. I also used paper stencils to make the crisp edges. This piece also includes hand-painted stems and washes of acrylic ink.

The paper is 75 x 56 cm with a working margin to be covered with a window mount. The viewable image will then be 74 x 51 cm.

Supplied unframed, rolled in a wide, strong tube.

Materials used:

Oil-based artist quality ink on Rives BFK cotton rag paper

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