He muses: "It's like destroying and creating at the same time". Tonkin's visual metaphors begin to exist by flinging bright colour paint onto canvases.
Tonkin's visual metaphors begin to exist by flinging bright colour paint onto canvases. Different hues remain either monochromatic or merge with other paints in the appearing shapes and forms. The results seem improvised and accidental, evoking close-ups of foreign terrains. It is their lush and exotic presence that draws us. Light and bright silhouettes are displayed prominently in the foreground, whereas the darker and often muted shades exude mystery and depth.
Each of Tonkin’s canvas is invigorating and bids for our attention. His creative process begins as an action painter, but then his method turns into contemplation, drawing on his imagination while working the painted surfaces; it is a nod to the laudable 1940s – 1960s New York School. These two essential modes lead to Tonkin’s own search for expressiveness. To him, the subject matter is of secondary concern, the emphasis is on colour, form, and the viewer’s own interpretation.
Image:
Paul Tonkin, Climatology, 2017, acrylic paint on canvas, H1200 mm x W1830 mm.
Courtesy and ©Paul Tonkin and Renée Pfister Art & Gallery Consultancy, 2021.
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