Contrast
Paintings by Robin Thompson

“My paintings explore the tensions between contemporary society’s relentless activity and our need for shelter from it”.

A glance at my wardrobe will reveal oil paint everywhere: even my suits sport the odd dash of yellow. For me, painting is immersion in colour, form and texture, but also in smell and touch – I let my fingers do a lot of painting. Samuel Beckett said: “To find the form that accommodates the mess, that’s the task of the artist now”. I try to find form and meaning through my messy painting process.

My paintings reflect the swirl of conflicting feelings we carry inside us. Most of us feel the need for points of calm and quiet as an escape from the assault of constant activity, images, noise and complexity. My abstract paintings are about that tension between the rush of activity and the need for shelter from it. Areas of calm compete with areas of intense movement.

More of my work is on www.robinthompsonartist.com

Clay Expression
My ceramic pieces are intuitive, hand built and individual. Some induce serenity, others suggest liveliness and energy. My ceramic pieces are intuitive – not planned. Each is hand built and individual. Some of my work induces serenity; other pieces suggest energy and liveliness.

Texture gets full expression in the clay. Some pieces are impressions of, for example, tree bark and stone walls. I use a range of stoneware clays, fired in the kiln and by the Raku process.

My long standing interest in Japanese design and ceramics has deepened through several trips, including visits to 4 of the original ‘pottery villages’ – the latest being this March. The natural forms I build reflect the environment they are created in: my farmhouse and the countryside around.