David Cairns
I've been painting most of my life. Honours degree in Fine Arts. Teaching degree. Art teacher at the jr high level for a couple of years. After that, building a successful career in the Canadian media industry occupied most of my time and energy.
I'm back at it now with a passion, re-discovering the high of creation. Which, when you think about it, is about bringing to life that which never existed. Original art is just that: Original. And every artist, whether in visual arts, or music, or literature, seeks to bring out something new. Never seen before...ever. Unique!
That's exciting for me and, I expect, for you.
ARTIST’S STATEMENT
I am an abstract painter, living and working in Toronto, Canada with acrylic paint, plexiglass and canvas, creating abstract, non representational art.
The subject of my work is colour and shape, moving together harmoniously and uniquely. With just a chosen colour palette, I am primarily interested in the shapes, lines, intersections and effects that colours can assume as they find their way over the plane. In doing so, I find visual satisfaction in both micro details, and the total image viewed from a distance.
My process consists of acrylic paint applied to canvas or transparent plexiglass, with palette knife, fingers, stick, brush, drizzle, pouring, and sponging. In my work with transparent acrylic glass - or plexiglass -, the paint is applied to one side of the plexiglass and the completed painting is viewed through the other side, like a window – resulting in a flat finish of greater luminosity than canvas painting, reminiscent of silk screen.
My goal is to create images that the viewer is drawn to, spends time with, gets lost in and finds new imagery and meaning upon each viewing, thereby retaining its freshness and vitality.
I have long been inspired by the Quebec movement les Automatistes - and particularly Jean McEwen – and both the discipline and freedom of standing before a blank support with a free mind, attempting to create something that has never existed. The creative immediacy in applying and manipulating color, abstractly and without preconceived images in mind can be breathtakingly freeing, surprising and rewarding.
The challenge in my work presents itself in the spontaneous, ‘in the moment’ decisions made, and the subtle, almost fragile interplay of colour, shape and line that results. To not overthink, to discover the energy inherent in the colour placements, to let balance and composition emerge organically.
I believe in the beauty of original creativity, of not repeating myself, of challenging my work anew. In a world where so much human ingenuity will be replaced by technology, guarding and celebrating individual creativity may never have been more important.
..
I've been painting most of my life. Honours degree in Fine Arts. Teaching degree. Art teacher at the jr high level for a couple of years. After that, building a successful career in the Canadian media industry occupied most of my time and energy.
I'm back at it now with a passion, re-discovering the high of creation. Which, when you think about it, is about bringing to life that which never existed. Original art is just that: Original. And every artist, whether in visual arts, or music, or literature, seeks to bring out something new. Never seen before...ever. Unique!
That's exciting for me and, I expect, for you.
ARTIST’S STATEMENT
I am an abstract painter, living and working in Toronto, Canada with acrylic paint, plexiglass and canvas, creating abstract, non representational art.
The subject of my work is colour and shape, moving together harmoniously and uniquely. With just a chosen colour palette, I am primarily interested in the shapes, lines, intersections and effects that colours can assume as they find their way over the plane. In doing so, I find visual satisfaction in both micro details, and the total image viewed from a distance.
My process consists of acrylic paint applied to canvas or transparent plexiglass, with palette knife, fingers, stick, brush, drizzle, pouring, and sponging. In my work with transparent acrylic glass - or plexiglass -, the paint is applied to one side of the plexiglass and the completed painting is viewed through the other side, like a window – resulting in a flat finish of greater luminosity than canvas painting, reminiscent of silk screen.
My goal is to create images that the viewer is drawn to, spends time with, gets lost in and finds new imagery and meaning upon each viewing, thereby retaining its freshness and vitality.
I have long been inspired by the Quebec movement les Automatistes - and particularly Jean McEwen – and both the discipline and freedom of standing before a blank support with a free mind, attempting to create something that has never existed. The creative immediacy in applying and manipulating color, abstractly and without preconceived images in mind can be breathtakingly freeing, surprising and rewarding.
The challenge in my work presents itself in the spontaneous, ‘in the moment’ decisions made, and the subtle, almost fragile interplay of colour, shape and line that results. To not overthink, to discover the energy inherent in the colour placements, to let balance and composition emerge organically.
I believe in the beauty of original creativity, of not repeating myself, of challenging my work anew. In a world where so much human ingenuity will be replaced by technology, guarding and celebrating individual creativity may never have been more important.
..
"ALGOMA"
$1,050
Acrylic on plexiglass (framed).
25x33"
Algoma’s colour palette recalls the work of the Group of Seven and celebrates the Fall colours of Northern Ontario through an abstracted approach.
Painted directly on the other side of the plexiglass and presented in a white frame, and signed.
ALGONQUIN
$1,500
Acrylic on plexiglass (framed).
44x36"
A fitting title for this wild abstract piece, suggesting imagery of forest, water, lightning and rivulets.
Painted directly on the other side of the plexiglass plane. Finished in a white frame and signed by the artist.
Great Lakes 2
$1,050
Acrylic on canvas (framed).
37x37"
Great Lakes 2 is an abstraction on the theme of environmental fragility. Around suggestions of lake and river lies the threat of heat escalation and water pollution.
Painted on 1.75" gallery canvas, and presented in a black frame.
ISLE OF CAPRI
$1,050
Acrylic on canvas.
36x36"
Isle of Capri is an abstract painting – and yet, one can’t help seeing wild surf smashing on rocks, as on an island surrounded by sea.
Edged in black and varnished.
BIJOU
Épuisé
Acrylic on plexiglass (framed).
37x49"
Like exotic jewels that refract the light, Bijou is a celebration of rich, jewel-like shapes and lines floating on light blue in a swirling animated composition.
Painted directly on the other side of the plexiglass plane.
Finished in a white frame and signed by the artist.
"OCEAN CROSSING"
$1,050
Acrylic on plexiglass (framed).
24x32"
"OCEAN CROSSING" is a reverse acrylic painting on acrylic sheet. Subtly applying paint by palette knife, brush and fingers, colours of violet, blue, white, orange are merged on one side of the acrylic sheet, and viewed through the other side.
The finished piece is like a window, producing a flat, luminous effect like a silk screen.
Finished in a white frame and signed in the bottom right.
DOCTOR MY EYES
$1,050
Acrylic on plexiglass (framed).
37x37"
"Doctor My Eyes" is a haunting red abstract set against dark blues and black, within which a mask-like face seems to emerge.
Painted directly on the other side of the plexiglass and presented in a white frame, and signed by the artist
ALPHA LUPI
$1,050
Acrylic on plexiglass (framed).
25x33"
Lupus is Latin for Wolf, and Alpha Lupi is the brightest star in the southern constellation of Lupus. Within the abstracted work, a wolf-like image emerges in the night sky.
Painted directly on the other side of the plexiglass and presented in a white frame, and signed.
DENIAL
$1,250
Acrylic on canvas.
30x40"
Denial is about climate change denial. It speaks to those who look past temperature rise and changing seasons. This abstract painting uses imagery of parched earth to make a point, that the world we live in is in crisis.
BLUES IN THE NIGHT
$1,050
Acrylic on plexiglass (framed).
37x37"
Diaphanous and moody, Blues In The Night hints of tear stains and passion in the blue darkness of night. Painted directly on the other side of the plexiglass plane.
Painted directly on the other side of the plexiglass.
Presented in a white frame, and signed.
Younger Than The Sun
$1,050
Acrylic on plexiglass (framed).
37x37"
“We were born before the wind. Also, younger than the sun. 'Ere the bonnie boat was won, as we sailed into the mystic” Van Morrison – Into The Mystic.
Younger Than The Sun’s dominant yellow palette against turbulent white, black and pink echoes Morrison’s images of wind and sun.
Painted directly on the other side of the plexiglass plane. Finished in a while frame ad signed by the artist.
"WETLANDS"
$900
Acrylic on glass (framed).
19x19"
"WETLANDS" is a reverse acrylic painting on glass sheet. Colours of blue, turquoise, yellow, white, pink and grey are applied to one side of the glass sheet, highlighted by scratching through the paint to produce a scribbling quality.
The painting is viewed through the other side, like a window - producing a luminous, flat effect like a silk screen.
Finished in a black frame and signed in the bottom right.
ODYSSEY
$1,500
Acrylic on plexiglass (framed).
37x49"
Odyssey takes the viewer’s eye deep into a dark void in the centre of the painting, further heightened by dramatic swirls of colour, with light on the edges, promising an adventurous journey…an odyssey.
Painted directly on the other side of the plexiglass plane.
OCTOBER
$900
Acrylic on plexiglass (framed).
25x25"
"October" embraces the changing colours and winds in the 10th month of the year. Oranges, yellow, and pinks, swirl against darker tree imagery.
Painted directly on the other side of the plexiglass plane. Finished in a white frame and signed by the artist.
CELESTIAL
$1,050
Acrylic on canvas.
36x36"
Firework -like explosions of colour against the dark of a night sky!
Edged in black and varnished.
GOLDEN SLUMBERS
$1,050
Acrylic on plexiglass (framed).
37x37"
From The Beatles’ Abbey Road, the song Golden Slumbers was based on a 17th century English poem. It’s a particularly apt title for this painting, set in a dreamlike environment of golden yellow and white surrounded by the darkness of sleep. Painted directly on the other side of the plexiglass plane.
...Golden slumbers fill your eyes
Smiles await you when you rise
Sleep pretty darling, do not cry
And I will sing a lullaby
Fathom Five
$1,050
Acrylic on plexiglass (framed).
37x37"
“Full fathom five thy father lies, of his bones are coral made” Shakepeare _ The Tempest.
Fathom Five recalls coral simmering in the dark blue depths of tragic water. Painted directly on the other side of the plexiglass plane.
Finished in a white frame and signed by the artist.
"GLACIAL"
$1,050
Acrylic on plexiglass (framed).
24x32"
"GLACIAL" is a reverse acrylic painting on acrylic plastic sheet. Vibrant colours of black, red, white, yellow, blue and dark blue are applied to one side of the acrylic sheet and the painting is viewed through the other side, resulting in a luminous, flat image, almost like a silk screen.
"GLACIAL" is finished in a white 1.5" frame and is signed on the bottom right.
FIRST LIGHT
$1,050
Acrylic on plexiglass (framed).
37x37"
"First Light" is a colourful abstract of dark blues and blacks against vibrant reds, yellows and violets....and suggestive of early morning sunrise.
Painted directly on the other side of the plexiglass plane. Finished in a while frame and signed by the artist.
NOCTURNE 1
$900
Acrylic on canvas.
36x36"
Inspired by many of Chopin’s piano pieces, Nocturne 1 is a moody, mysterious abstract of quiet blues, punctuated by dreamlike pinks and white like visions in the night.
SUPERNOVA
$1,050
Acrylic on canvas.
36x36"
Supernova is an explosion of colour, that feels like it wants to explode right past the edges of the canvas.
Edged in black and varnished.
NINE STORIES
$1,500
Acrylic on plexiglass (framed).
37x49"
While an abstract painting, Nine Stories is in fact nine distinct pieces within a mullion-like grid. The painting’s name refers both to a collection of nine distinct stories published in 1953 by JD Salinger, and a reference to mullions, typically seen in multi story architecture.
Painted directly on the other side of the plexiglass plane. Finished in a while frame and signed by the artist.
"NORTH WIND"
$900
Acrylic on plexiglass.
24x24"
"NORTH WIND" is a reverse acrylic painting on acrylic (plexiglass) sheet.
With winter approaching, North Wind’s multiple blues against white shapes remind us of the cold, violent winds blowing across the Atlantic.
Paint is applied by palette knife to one side of the plexiglass and the painting is viewed through the other side, like a window - resulting in a luminous, flat effect almost like a silk screen.
Finished in a white frame and signed in the bottom right.
WILD NIGHT
$1,050
Acrylic on plexiglass (framed).
37x37"
"WILD NIGT" is a reverse acrylic painting on acrylic plastic sheet. Vibrant colours of black, dark red, white, violet, yellow, orange and blue are applied to one side of the acrylic sheet and the painting is viewed through the other side, resulting in a luminous, flat image, almost like a silk screen.
"WILD NIGHT" is finished in a white 1.5" frame and is signed on the bottom right.