Minna Stevens – 2017

Whatever I am painting, my aim is to capture the complexity of light and colour of a certain place at a particular time of day. This often involves looking afresh at what is most familiar to me. I enjoy this renewal of vision that makes everyday sights wonderful and strange.

I am as concerned with light and colour in the studio-based paintings as I am with the landscapes of the Oxfordshire countryside I know so well. I want to give equal weight across the canvas; no mark is more or less significant than another. The portraits of my friends bring greater challenges. Familiarity often means that we are less inclined to stop and really look – let alone scrutinize. The sitter becomes part of the colour field. There is no obvious single focal point; we have to work to take in the canvas as a whole. There can be tension and anxiety in our attempts to grasp it all. The ostensibly calm and contemplative subjects become dynamic, both for me as the painter and for the viewer. I hope I bring a warmth to these deeply personal subjects while giving a sense of the struggle to hold it all together.

Exhibitions at Gallery 286

• 2019
• 2017
• 2015
• 2013
• 2011