This month's Curator's Choice is one that reflects the transition we experience in the month of August. It's the month when we get in our last-minute beach trips, soak in the warmth, and prepare for the incoming Autumn activities like going back to school and apple picking. That's why our Curator's Choice is that of Opalescence. Read on to learn more about why the upcoming change in season is so well embodied by this acrylic painting.
What It's About
Opalescence takes a traditional rural landscape and boils it down to its most simplistic state, leaving the viewer with a new perspective and a sense of nostalgia. "Barns are part of the American landscape but they don't always have to be red and traditional," the artist says of this piece. "This contemporary painting features a simplistic barn sitting in a peach colored field - a suggestion of the beach and the sea beyond. The sky is alive with shimmering opalescence. Barns evoke a feeling of a simpler era, and this painting is a minimalist composition that takes me back in time."
Where It Works
Measuring 36" x 36", Opalescence is a large acrylic painting with exposed, natural wood sides. Because of its bright and unique palette, it works especially well in a neutral, well-lit space. The painting as a whole is rather versatile - so while it may be particularly appealing to the minimalist, it's also abstracted, and it's still recognizable as a landscape. For that reason, as long as it doesn't clash with the rest of a room's palette, it can be successful as an eye-catching focal piece almost anywhere.
Why We Love It
While we love Opalescence for its clean lines and minimalist composition, it's the palette that really takes this painting to a new level. The orange ground evokes warm sand on a beach, but that particular hue is one we tend to associate with fall leaves. Similarly, the green is separated by a second horizon line so the viewer believes there to be a body of water, while purple shadows provide a cool balance to the warmth - a coolness that may be just around the corner. So while coastal in composition, the artist's use of color provides us with a subtle reminder that the state of nature is fleeting, and a new season is always on its way.
Carol C. Young is a landscape painter whose contemporary work is primarily identified by a bold use of light and shadow along with iconic depictions of structures within the rural landscape. A fine arts major at the College of New Rochelle, NY, her paintings have won several awards including best in show at the Pequot Library Art show in Connecticut, first place in the acrylic division at the Rowayton Arts Center in Connecticut, and second place for acrylics/oils at the Mary O. Fritchie Art Show in Westhampton Beach, New York.
To learn more about our Curator's Choice, shop Opalescence here. You can also shop all of Carol's artwork, including original paintings and prints, on her Artist page.
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