Solve et Coagula




Solve et Coagula
Oil on Canvas (2026), 80 × 110cm
This oil painting Reimagines the Pietà as an internal, alchemical process rather than a purely religious image of grief. The body becomes a site of transformation, where loss is transmuted into renewal.
Through the integration of flesh, drapery, landscape, and symbolic form, the painting holds multiple states - material and psychological - within a single unified surface. Layered oil techniques and controlled glazing allow contrasting colour systems; earth tones, acidic chroma, and atmospheric neutrals, to coexist and resolve. The work tests whether complexity and symbolic transformation can remain grounded in the intelligence of paint.
Subverting classical iconography with abstract shapes and forms, the painting also contains hidden alchemical sybolism.
My paintings are created using artist-grade, high pigment oil paints on carefully prepared cotton or linen canvas, chosen for their durability, surface quality, and ability to hold subtle layers of colour over time. Each canvas is triple-primed to create a stable, archival surface that allows for both precision and luminosity within the paint.
The works are built slowly through layered glazing techniques inspired by Renaissance painting methods. Thin translucent layers of oil colour are applied over time to create depth, atmosphere, and shifts in light that cannot be achieved through direct painting alone. This process allows light to travel through the paint surface and reflect back outward, giving the work its characteristic glow and sense of inner luminosity.
I use a combination of controlled modelling, sfumato, and transparent colour layering to create delicate tonal transitions, rich shadows, and heightened colour vibration while retaining clarity of form and detail. The final surface is carefully varnished once fully cured, enriching colour depth, unifying the finish, and providing long-term protection for the painting.
Every material choice is made with permanence, visual depth, and collector longevity in mind, allowing the paintings to function not only as images, but as crafted objects designed to endure across time.