Undressing

The figure in this painting arrived by accident during a rapid one minute pose at a life class. I crudely sketched her down in oil pastel, focusing entirely on the flat shape of her and a basic rectangle representing the floor. This image occupied my mind and I wanted to explore it further, wondering if I could retain its simplicity. I made a collage and then another - exploring a simple subdued colour palette and then a brighter one. The latter made me think she was outside and for a while I was lost creating surrounding scenery, before realising that I’d lost the original simplicity. I re-simplified but the green and blue colours I had used in the second collage still put her outside and I wanted to give her some clothes. I made some in collage and then enjoyed switching different outfits, like a dress up collage. This became the inspiration for two paintings, made alongside one another. This one was an attempt to adhere to the original subdued and simple colour palette. At the very last minute I sketched on the underwear and decided to leave it very loosely described to maintain the feeling of movement and a moment in time.