Paper Sheet. Bordeaux Tree 2. Tree Skins Collection

Bordeaux Tree 2. Acrylic paint on paper.
Dimensions: 42 cm high x 29.5 cm wide. 

When I was painting this picture, I felt that something inside me was at rest. That's why the brushstrokes are continuous, with no changes or contrasts. Despite this, I want to continue to explore the canvas, to play with colours and textures, to discover where this path between the tree and the skin leads me.

Skin is a surface, but it conceals much more than that. Things are held under our skin, and sometimes they come out - or not - as is the case with the bark of a tree, which also has an aesthetic character. There are as many types of skin as there are life experiences, and perhaps this tree skin allows me to release what I sometimes can't see or imagine.

The technique I use in this series is based on acrylic paint on canvas or paper. Depending on the needs of the work, I incorporate textures with paper - usually white - combined with gesso. To this mixture I add dense brushstrokes, with which I form cracks, channels and other textures. I also like to use craquelure to fracture certain areas of the paint, creating a natural effect that evokes the mark of the passage of time on surfaces.

The predominant tones are pastels, with a range that transitions between neutrals, clay and lavender. While I was painting several pictures of this series in the last months, I felt that something inside me was slowly moving towards a place called calm. That is why the brushstroke remains constant, without jolts or breaks.

I wish to continue experimenting with this technique in the Tree Skin series, moving forward with the colors and their textures, and discovering, step by step, what is hidden under the skin.