Gold Fever!

Throughout the ages gold has been used in art to symbolise, power, wealth to magical and spiritual qualities. From the Mask of Tutankhamun, to old manuscripts and religious paintings, not forgetting Klimt’s use of gold leaf! It has the ability to lift and transform an object and give it a tactile and captivating quality.

A few years ago I was asked to exhibit with the theme being Nature in Winter. I had been using touches of gold in my paintings but I wanted to experiment with something totally different. I came up with the idea of using gold as the main medium.

I was researching different papers and came across a beautiful hand-made Mulberry paper, which had twigs, petals and leaves embedded in it. This was the foundation and now I had to find a good medium to draw with that was fine enough but that also gave a raised edge for me to add the gold to. I found Pébéo Milton Relief which went on as a white paste and dried clear. It’s a bit like icing a cake and very fiddly but it was perfect for the look and feel I was after.

After adding the gold I wanted some depth so I added an Indian ink to the trees to antique them and also pastels for shading and adding the snow to the foreground. I found a high quality box frame with a double-mount to give depth and a perfect finish.

Below are some of the finished paintings – each of them I have sold as I’ve produced them, so it’s been a project that has grown over the years. I have made small adjustments to refine and experiment.

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The two below are my very latest and still available. I have used two different colours of the paper to give more contrast and added a holographic moon that changes colour as you move around the painting, creating a magical aura.

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The paintings are so difficult to photograph and these images really don’t do justice to the real thing. If you want something totally unique and unusual they make a wonderful gifts, so please get in touch if you are interested: +44 (0)7970 032 305 or email am@bussroot.com