Abstract cityscapes series-'Mirage'

‘Mirage’ is abstract cityscapes series that I have been working on for the last two months or so. In this series  I continued the idea of transforming the realistic urban scenes  to the abstract. I started from palette of 4 colours that are most appealing to me which are oranges and blues, and made about 20 sketches. I have learned that more sketches you paint are better.  It gives the opportunity to experiment and then to choose most successful ones.

While sketching , I have referred to photos or scenes that I have seen , but mostly I improvised.  I think improvisation is a key in abstract painting! After I have painted few paintings, one of my fans commented that I should call the series –mirages.

I researched mirage phenomenon online and found interesting facts about it. I was surprised how matching this association was to my colour scheme and the compositions! As you know mirage are the physical optical phenomenon which could be photographed. It happens mostly in desserts, seas and highways. In brief, it is a reflection of trees, buildings or water through different layers of air. Sometimes these images could be seen upside down. So ‘Mirage’ it is!

In this series I continued my favourite medium – fluid acrylic paint with collage. Newsprints of Russian, Hebrew and English texts  are from Toronto newspapers that I have found at home. I like to see the integration of texts and Japanese rice paper in the painting. For me the painting doesn’t look finished if there are no paper additions. Also while painting this series, I started to experiment with drips which I observed in the works of many artists , but never had courage to  try. I have learned that it is the most uncontrollable technique I ever used! It was scary in the beginning , but in the end it made painting interesting and look like something alive.  

The next step is my exhibition in March at Gallery F (George Brown College) where I will exhibit my abstract cityscapes series ‘Mirage’ and ‘City of Neighbourhoods’ to the public critic.