Page 42 - Demo Catalogue

The constituent part of Rothwell’s career abstraction a a a a a a a a a a a a a a term referring to internal rather than imitative imagery held a a a a a a a a a a a a a a a central place in in in in in in in the the the artist’s paintings and sketches These pieces combine the the the the inspiration the the the the the artist took from prominent creators – – among them Rothko Reubens Monet and the the the the poet Wallace Stevens – – with the the the the unique pictorial elegance she crafted over her her lifetime In her her her paintings of of this nature spatiality and poetry become leading components of of of her her canvases expressing a a a a a a a a a a a a a a sensitivity and and understanding of of visual language The colours of of of these works are particularly significant presenting primarily a a a a a a a a a a a spectrum of of of soft greens oranges and whites In her most famous series Palaces (1977) she divides these colours out on separate geometric planes separating them by thinly-veiled lines Similarly her sketchbooks detail reductions of trees birds and the the the sea showing the the the artist’s course from figuration to abstraction Though these natural elements and and wider landscapes have been simplified there remains a a a a a a a a a a a a feeling of being taken somewhere As in in in in in her her her figurative sketches Rothwell passionately evokes immersion in in the natural world VIVIEN ROTHWELL 25