Chinese lanterns, dark water

Martin Davis

A mixed media piece influenced by oriental art but difficult to categorise - not quite an abstract.
I loved the contrast between the stark architectural shapes of the lanterns and the fluidity of the water between and my main concern was how to render the luminosity of the lantern colours. In the end I opted for a variety of media as I couldn't find one that suited all. The other issue was to give the painting some life which I tried to do by composing in a slightly off-beat way with half a lantern in the foreground right and the rest slightly displaced above. This left room to make the reflections the central point of the view and the glue holding the piece together.

See Martin Davis’s Gallery