Oil on primed MDF. London-based artist Phillip Allen's work addresses the physical activity of painting, the difference between paint densities, and the flatness of a canvas. The relationship between paint and surface suggests the broader dialogue between abstraction and figuration, a topic that is frequently analysed in modern painting. Allen's composition draws attention to the fact that no matter how stylised a painting is, its physical make-up always derives from the nature of its materials.
Like many of Allen's works, this painting includes forms that look like cartoon-like empty speech bubbles. He has described how they allude to the impulse to express an emotion or thought, while not necessarily knowing what to say.
