Sheep Without a Shepherd
1998
Oil over Egg Tempera on Gesso Board
80 x 100 cm
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The painting ‘Sheep without a Shepherd’ reflects the very dark night of the soul I experienced as the Shetland winter took its hold alongside the first murmurings of my severance from organised religion
I was not just questioning my relationship to organised religion but also questioning my own path as a painter and most especially when alone in the isolation of the telephone exchange through the long dark Shetland winters when the quest for pure vibrant colour came like cry in the dark . The sheep in this painting appears to be alone without a shepherd, but the shepherd in this painting is the very colour itself as the glowing magenta dispels the weight of the darkness all around and embraces life in all in its power and promise.
I was not just questioning my relationship to organised religion but also questioning my own path as a painter and most especially when alone in the isolation of the telephone exchange through the long dark Shetland winters when the quest for pure vibrant colour came like cry in the dark . The sheep in this painting appears to be alone without a shepherd, but the shepherd in this painting is the very colour itself as the glowing magenta dispels the weight of the darkness all around and embraces life in all in its power and promise.