Keith Tyson uses processes and systems in his work as a way of understanding how the universe works and how we came into being.
I have always adored Keith Tyson’s paintings, especially his series of Nature Paintings. They are stunning and have beautiful lines and shapes that develop apparently by themselves with no intervention from the artist. He poured different paints and chemicals on to hot aluminium and allowed them flow, then it was set in a halfway state. He said he was letting nature make the painting and he was trying to lose as much control as possible.
Some of Tyson’s Nature Paintings were named after the force that created them, like air, fire, earth and water. In my work I really want to use water a lot more and make it almost a main material that I use. This will allow me to lose some control and also emphasize the mysterious power of water.
I have seen Deep impact in person at the Royal Academy’s Summer Exhibition in 2011, and noticed the glossy sheen, due to the aluminium surface, which you can’t see in a photograph or online, which is something I like in my work. Sometimes I spritz a dry painting with water and it often looks better wet than dry, which is one of the reason why i like to give my paintings some kind of varnish like PVA as it gives it a glossy finish as well as protecting the many layers.
