Waiting for the Tide

Description

‘Waiting For The Tide’ is a wonderful new painting by British contemporary artist Kerry Shearer.

This naïve coastal landscape helps lend a relaxed and calming feel to any room.

Painted in her typical Naïve style Kerry has composed a narrative to the scene with her use of texture, colour palette and playful perspective. The harbour wall stretches around the canvas as though hugging the little ships and inviting them to stay.

Without the need for bright primary colours Kerry’s muted pigments are put to great use creating a scene of coastal serenity. As the boats rest lazily in the harbour, sunshine hitherto lends a gentle glow to the seaside town. Though there are many thick layers applied to the sky the limited shades of creamy yellows lend a sense of calm. There is little movement in the upper atmosphere. This fishing village has been bathed in a warm light.

The colours of the fishing boats are replicated in the surrounding village homes. This gives rise to a narrative in the painting between the two. Albeit these boats are defined in the foreground with crisp sharp lines the houses are less so. Altogether helping them to recede into the background creating a sense of perspective.

They do have other details to be of interest to the viewer. Cobblestones and bricks have been picked out using sgraffito. By scraping back to reveal a underlying colour the surface of the painting gains depth. The harbour wall mirrors this scraping technique creating a conversation between its structure and that of the surrounding coastal cottages within the painting.

The dream-like quality of this naïve coastal landscape easily appeals to our innocent inner-child. It is a painting that would offer a sense of peace and quiet contemplation in an otherwise busy hectic world. Now who wouldn’t want a little piece of that in their lives hanging on their wall?