Flames

22 in x 28 in,

10/24

The inspiration for this piece was a starburst pattern but spaced out so that I could put triangular insets at the base of each segment. I felt the grid would be best filled in with hot intense colors - reds, oranges and yellows - and the end result reminded me of flames. The challenge with this piece was the thinness of the segments toward the center of the painting, and I found that taping over the inset shapes did not work. Rather, I painted the insets first, then added the reds/oranges, painting right over the insets with the reds/oranges. When dry, I taped off the insets and then colored them in with yellows/golds. I added the insets with fairly heavy impasto not only because some of the yellows were semi-opaque (requiring a thick layer of application) but also to disguise any irregularities in texture.