Ten Seconds From Now

Purple, purple, purple!

I have often read that purple is a calming and naturally healing colour. This is certainly apparent whenever you walk into a candle shop or bedding store – they are feelings I can completely associate with.

However, it’s the addition of darker tones and other subtle nuances of colour that transform purple from a relaxed and grounded colour into a rich and opulent one.

I prefer to leave the tranquility of it to others and concentrate on using purple to celebrate and rejoice with. I also find it’s one of those colours that lends itself to blending so much better than almost any other. So I find the inclusion of black, grape, red, maroon and silver irresistible as I search for new ways to use it as a base colour.

Gently does it

It’s these subtleties that are one of the feature points of this painting and can be seen in some of the close-up photos included on this page.

The ability of an abstract painting to work from all distances is key to getting the most from it; I like to pack in detail on a close level and impact from across a room.

And whilst we’re on the subject of subtlety I have also added a box shape to the outer confines of the piece. You can just about see a line around the outside that contains the lighter shades in the centre but protects the darker ones around the edges.

It was something I hadn’t considered until I started painting it but was a concept that developed as I began applying the top most layers. So there are lines and boundaries away from the central white cross shapes too. Like I’ve said before it’s all about the details, no matter how big a painting is. And there are plenty of them in Ten Seconds From Now.

What about the name?

The name came from nowhere – my mind had wandered onto another planet when I was painting this one and it was in session two (base coat and blend layer) when I thought to myself ‘I wonder what I’ll be doing ten years from now?’, then joked out loud ‘I can barely imagine what I’ll be doing ten seconds from now!’ and so the name was secured.

I guess that’s a good mentality to have because it means that the only precious thing to ever be worried about is the moment you exist in right now. And that is where we are all at our greatest.