MICHAEL IRELAND
Transparent by Nature
Artist Statement
I’ve come to understand the true art of watercolor for me is within the painting process itself. It is the brush washing the paper with color, the colors merging upon the texture of the paper, the combination of techniques and lessons learned from painting and then painting even more. And hopefully, upon completion of the art, a “work” of art is produced. But that is not necessarily the point. It is the painting process itself that is so important.
My paintings are consistent in traditional transparent watercolor technique…working to achieve the balance of light and shadow through a transparent glazing wash, allowing the white of the paper to delineate any and all white areas of the scene itself. It becomes a very disciplined painting style that simultaneously works to deliver both spontaneity and control.
Much of my work is executed in a fairly large scale and large format by transparent watercolor standards. I enjoy the challenge of reining in a huge wash and working over the full sheet with the sweep of each color pass and the ability to weave details of color all the while defining form within form. My goal is to create a piece that is as interesting up close as it is simple and strong from afar. These new pieces are ranging from 80”W x 18” H to 96”W x 45”H. My preferred watercolor paper is Arches 300 # though the large formats have dictated the use of 140 # Arches on rolls or 4'x 8' Aquabord panels.
JAYNE ROSE
Painted Pressure Points
Artist Statement
My work lives in moments of tension and release, where bold color and decisive gesture mark the invisible forces that shape experience. In these abstract compositions, pressure isn’t something to avoid but something to feel: a pivot between emotion and movement, pause and pulse.
I paint with an instinctive energy that embraces spontaneity and intuition. Each stroke is an invitation to inhabit the space between surface and sensation, to feel how color itself can be a charge, a pulse, a pause. My practice responds to the world’s rhythms: the shifting landscapes, the rush of light, the quiet insistence of intuition, and shaping them into a visual language that resonates.
In Painted Pressure Points, I invite you to slow down, lean in, and let these surfaces speak not just to your eyes, but to your felt experience of color, shape, and tension.
