Totem, Alex Rennie - seen in Liverpool at the John Moores Paint Prize Exhibition (2016). One of a 6 part series.
"These canvases invite the viewer to explore a vibrant and evolving cityscape; a forest of red columns evokes the urban environment, they stretch vertically above the viewer to suggest continual growth." - Rennie
I cant quite describe how stunningly luminous the red pigment of this painting was in person. Rennie's bold colour choice and lucid mark making language speaks in visual metaphors of the endlessly multiplying, monotonous built environment. The elongated columns forming a towering 'forest' successfully makes the viewer feel minimised. I found myself stood in front of this canvas for a long while, indulging in what it might be like to immerse myself in this black and red jungle, weaving through the columns. For me, it's one of those paintings that I know will be vividly etched in my mind forever.
Totem, Oil on Linen
150 x 210 (cm)
