Turnpike Gallery, Leigh 1996
FEAR - Trilogy, 2019 (Brexit March)  200cm x 600cm, Acrylic Medium + Pigment on Canvas
Requiem for the Victims of the London Bridge Attack 3 June 2017,  2017,   150cm x 240cm,  Acrylic Medium + Pigment on Canvas, Collection of the Imperial War Museum, London
Wave, 2014, Triptych 200cm x 600cm,  Acrylic Medium + Pigment on Canvas

This website shows a few examples of my paintings and drawings spanning roughly three decades.
In essence my paintings are attempting an analysis of what it is to be human, focusing on our most fundamental common denominators in a deeply personal way. They are a continuous, lifelong course of exploration that tries to make sense of existence.

I isolate split seconds of consciousness, moments which feel to be generally representative, internalize and then translate them into my own visual language to resonate my perceptions. By this I literally materialize my conclusions in the form of an object of paint which is designed to be a stand-alone entity that has no intentional, specific narrative but relies on viewers to to read its content using their own associations. 


My work is entirely figurative, ranging from group constellations, single figures to closely focused heads and faces. Figure paintings are usually very large, single heads can range from 170cm square canvases down to A4 size for works on paper. 


The originality of my work lies in the way I use paint, i.e. applying countless layers of Acrylic, consisting of various kinds of raw medium mixed with colour pigment, and building up a translucent body of material that sits relief/object-like on the canvas. 
The surface appearance can vary greatly within one painting and is usually very complex. Different surface treatment defines different plains of focus and importance within an image. 
Paint thickness can be watercolour-thin or impasto up to 15mm, glossy smooth or textured, aggressively spiky or porous. Although the human image forms the basis to my work, it is ultimately only the foundation that acts as a carrier for my painterly language and as an aid to access it. Beyond the representational dimension, my work relies on a complex variety of means to convey its content, which equally includes strong abstract, sculptural and associational aspects and uses colour as an important key element.
 
These paintings have to be seen first hand to be deciphered, a computer screen is misleading and does not disclose their uniqueness or give an impression of their physical presence.

SARA ROSSBERG