Elizabeth Rees: A Short Walk From My Brother's Bach (2011)

Elizabeth Rees’ new exhibition is a twelve part poem to summer, light and being at the beach. In the past Rees work has characteristically been atmospheric in character. This exhibition demonstrates a broad range of skills and (again) her virtuoso handling of paint.

“Bright Tide” (2010) demonstrates remarkable abilities. Leafed branches carve the work into pieces. They dominate the foreground and set the visual agenda. The aptly named “Sepia Light” (2010) captures the essential moments of a day’s beginning – where darkness still inhabits the bush and light arises in the air. “Reflections after Rain’ (2010) and “Rivulets after Rain” (2010) likewise reveal the breadth of her representational command and the silent silvery slide of tides.

The contrast of light and dark is fundamental to all Rees' paintings. “Pastel Evening” (2010), “Through the Pines” (2010) and “Through the Thickets” (2010) reprise this, with the sense of looking, from and to, focally dominant.

Three inter-related works (Blue Beyond, Slender Pines, Gathering Clouds) return to the bright light of day and the broader palette of “Bright Tide”. ‘A Short Walk from My Brother’s Bach’ takes us to the simplicity of summer, the personal joy of being at the beach and how we come to remember, building the specifics of location through a process of glimpses, moments and private journeys.