With all works named after locations around the island which were visited and acted as sources of inspiration whilst she was on residency in Menorca, Lover talks II invites the viewer to experience those connections and memories of the artist, whilst often simultaneously in the process of creating their own experience in the very same location.
Sara Marlowe Hall’s paintings and drawings are all based on landscapes in Menorca, experienced whilst on residency. The paintings have linear lines and blocks of color that reference the countryside and deep blues of the Balearic Sea. Her plaster paintings reference the soil, plants, red rocks, blue sea and rusty sand. Her daily routine of going to different beaches influence the paintings, depending on the long countryside roads, forest sand beaches, or rock slab plunge pools. Each painting creates a new landscape, through the painters’ eyes. The titles give reference to specific settings, forming a direct link to the special bond formed between the artist and the island.
Specially for this series, Sarah forged her own unique technique through the development of her plaster paintings. Made by mixing acrylics and water placed into different buckets to create her palette. In what is a highly physical process, she rips up individual plaster strips, dipping them into the paint, and then masks them onto the canvas. The motion with which she does this mimics her brushstrokes, the plaster strips becoming them as they are stretched across the canvas and laid on top of one another. Each strip is then layered one by one until the artist feels that the composition is complete.
What is left are truly sculptural paintings, full of texture and depth; a series of moments framed in almost window-like captures of a certain light, landscape, element, feeling.
“My paintings are driven by nostalgia and by a process where I incorporate the imagery and textures of old walls, aerial landscapes, or abstract shapes of bodies seen in passing. There are many layers and stages to my work. I start by painting a collection of small scale studies using gouache, watercolor and pigments. I explore the different relationships between color and form on the page. […] When viewing my work, I want each individual to have a unique emotional response. I want my artworks to give rise to their own memories and connections.”
- Sarah Marlowe Hall
