Expressing Emotion
Abstraction is sometimes seen as a genre mainly interested in form. In fact, it can be a powerful tool for expressing emotions and stirring feelings in the viewer.
Phyllis Purser’s ‘Black Abstract’ uses colour, form and texture to create a stifling and oppressive atmosphere. The dark paint has been heavily applied to create a thick criss-crossing mass which obstructs us from whatever lies beyond. There is something unsettling about the way in which we are confined in the shallow foreground of its space.
This atmosphere may be a particularly surprising creation from an artist who is much better known for her work creating children’s postcards from the same period, which largely featured doll-like characters illustrating short and sentimental rhymes.