Under The Bridge

Mixed media on board. 155 x 115 x 7 cm

Paint pouring, resin and mixed media on board · 155 x 115cm · deep 7cm edges

On the North Island of New Zealand, Rachel crossed a rickety old wooden bridge strung over a sheer drop. Far below, torrents of water crashed and churned between the rocks, dragging stones and debris along in their wake with a deafening roar. Looking straight down through the gaps in the boards, she could feel as well as hear the force rushing beneath her feet, and that dizzying, exhilarating moment is what this painting captures.

Great dark masses of rock, speckled and bubbled like wet stone in the spray, push through sheets of glossy silver and white water. Fine black lines trace across the surface like currents and eddies. Scattered among the rocks are flat, bold shapes of colour, mauve pink, olive green, lemon yellow and flashes of orange, like pebbles and boulders glimpsed through the rushing water, including one striped black-and-yellow stone right at the heart of it all.

Rachel combined two techniques to capture this. Paint pouring creates the bubbling, cell-like textures, just like water foaming over stone. Resin brings the glassy, high-gloss surfaces, and it demands careful planning: it gives her just four minutes before it sets as hard as rock, so every pour on a piece this large had to be worked out in advance.

This is a true statement piece, bold, energetic and full of movement, and it never fails to get a reaction. People who see it in person tend to respond with gasps of "ooh", "wow" and "I love it!" It would command a large wall in an open-plan living space, a stairwell, or an entrance hall.

Price includes delivery within the UK. International shipping is available. Please get in touch for a quote.