studio
william watkin
THE MATERIALITY OF COLOUR
“Texture changes the way colour is experienced. Paint catches the light, interrupts the geometry and gives the surface a life of its own.”
Colour, Structure and Surface
William Watkin is a British contemporary abstract painter working from his studio in Oxfordshire.
His paintings explore the relationship between colour, repetition and the physical surface of paint. Geometric arrangements of stripes and intersecting forms provide an underlying structure, while layered acrylic paint introduces texture, irregularity and movement.
The work brings together two contrasting qualities: the discipline of repeated forms and the unpredictability of paint as a material.
Viewed from a distance, the paintings establish a strong visual rhythm. Closer inspection reveals the complexity of their surfaces, where colours overlap, edges shift and individual marks become visible.
The Painting Process
Watkin works primarily with acrylic paint, building up layers of colour before drawing, scraping and manipulating the surface.
The process allows patterns to emerge through successive additions and removals of paint. Some passages remain sharply defined; others retain the evidence of their making.
Although the compositions often begin with a geometric framework, the finished paintings are shaped by the interaction between deliberate structure and material chance.
