Saffy Howell

PAINTING

Instagram: saffy.fineart

My current painting practice explores the effects of light and dark in painting as a means of creating mood and atmosphere in my work.  I am influenced by chiaroscuro and film noir, drawing inspiration from both, to produce mood and tension in my paintings. By using a dark box to stage and photograph suspended objects, I am able to manipulate light and different angles to create mysterious compositions. Working between photographs of the suspended objects and the objects themselves, I created paintings that focus on not only the objects, but the depth of the box and the shadows created within the box. I use oil paint and Liquin glazes to build up layers of darkness, inspired by the effects of light and dark, typically found in chiaroscuro paintings.  The objects in my paintings can be seen to be absorbed by the darkness as well as emerging from the darkness. The choice of objects suspended in the composition is deliberately ambiguous in an attempt to unsettle the viewer.