Magic 2015

Bernadette Resha made this painting, ‘Magic’, sometime after she was born in 1989, using a playful approach to colour and form. There's something so direct and engaging about the way Resha layers and balances the textures, colours and shapes in this piece. It’s not about illusionism, more about the joy of placing one colour next to another. The way the white petals of the flower are outlined in grey/purple is just so lovely, and the orange stamen a masterclass in less-is-more. The background is a great example of how different patterns and textures can create a sense of depth and movement, even within a relatively flat picture plane. The patterns push and pull against each other and the bright flower in the centre. It makes me think a little bit of another artist, Elizabeth Murray, especially the way she uses colour and pattern to create a sense of energy and dynamism in her paintings. Ultimately, 'Magic' invites us to embrace the unpredictable, and to find beauty in the process of artmaking itself.