Resonant Line

Liam Stevens presents new work, including five paintings and two limited edition prints. “Painting is a continuous investigation,” Stevens says. “How to paint and what can be achieved is in itself a layering of time, thought and procedure, which runs mutually with the culmination of pigment and repeat washes in producing a work.”

Painted largely during the transition from winter to spring, this body of work by Liam Stevens draws from the emerging palettes of fresh colour found within the spaces where he lives. “The periodical shifts in nature’s tone and luminance through the year are a discernible reminder of continuous change for me,” he says. “The virgin leaves of a tree, or the crisp hue of an early morning sky, can bring a sense of optimism and renewed vigour.” At a time when we have perhaps been living a more insular life, he intends these works to affirm brighter experiences ahead.

For his first solo show at Francis Gallery, titled Resonant Line, London-based artist Liam Stevens creates a sense of rhythm with repeated lines and forms, while drawing equal attention to the negative space around them. Featuring layered pigment washes with pencil on canvas, constructed reliefs, and a selection of drawing studies, his work is inspired by the repeating structures he identifies in natural and urban landscapes, as well as his connection to music, which often takes a visual form. In his canvas compositions, subtle vertical grids act as a regular tempo, while groups of horizontal lines create a sense of movement, progressively stepping out of phase with the grid.