Artist's statement
This is an artist’s interpretation of the astonishing range of colours seen in the outback deserts of Australia. 

Having been amazed by the visually impressive emission and absorption spectra used in various scientific investigations, I deliberately chose a similar format for my painting.  I assembled the dominant and subsidiary colours seen in desert environments in a studied and organised yet completely spontaneous and intuitive way.

It is impossible to reproduce all the features of a desert landscape in a painting: there are too many inanimate objects like rocks and sand, also numerous plants, animals and micro-organisms, dead and alive.  However, it is possible to paint the essential visual elements and create an overview of a desert environment.  To achieve this, in this artwork I found it necessary to simplify, condense and assemble the characteristic colours that evoke the ‘feel’ of the place.

I opted for painting two colour spectra with spectral lines which complement each other: one warm and one cool, and each made up of contrasting and harmonising colours.  The result is a symbiotic diptych, demonstrating a co-existence of opposites.

As a professional contemporary artist, I draw my inspiration not only from unspoilt Mother Nature, but also from images scientists work with, such as photographs of galaxies, celestial objects, refraction patterns, fractals and images seen under a microscope.

I strongly believe in the fruitful interaction and cross-fertilisation of all creative disciplines, including humanities, the arts, pure and applied science. Ethically, the ultimate outcome of this process should be the wellbeing of all peoples, maintaining a sustainable healthy environment, promoting peace on earth and offering spiritual enlightenment to the individual!