Drawing on Life

About

De León’s work spans ten years and showcases the artist’s evolution from the figurative to increasing levels of abstraction, and his most recent foray in the world of photography.

Playful, twisted, fragmented and sometimes even tortured, de León’s earlier figurative works explore the human form, but as a linear point of departure for a deeper and personal exploration of consciousness and the nature of time.

De León’s later abstract work, while still drawing on a similar concept, is characterised by intense layers of colour, often applied directly by hand and then vigorously reworked on the surface of the paper, creating a sense of restless movement, while the constantly shifting and overlaying figures represent the fragility of time.

In his most recent photographic work, de León joins abstract and figurative, exploring nature, mirrored quite literally in a reflective surface or membrane. These highly painterly images, at first playful and then unsettling, look at the ecological consequences of mankind’s actions and examine how a ripple or small distortion can affect every element residing in a specific ecological system.

Annabelle Brotherton is a painter known for her gestural, expressive paintings and drawings that capture the sensation of immediacy combined with emotional depth.

Brotherton searches for the internal rhythm in a subject, particularly in the human form, while suggesting a deeper narrative about the lives of her subjects. 

“When a picture develops a ‘life’ of its own and starts to lead the way, that is where the real challenge begins; often the greatest battles on canvas can lead to the most successful pieces. Knowing when to stop and capture the energy on the canvas is just like netting a butterfly - holding on to something magical without crushing its wings.”