Fern Acheson (b. 2000)

Dancing Orange Figures

Watercolour and gouache on paper

Size: 40.6cm x 30.5cm (paper); 50cm x 40cm (frame)

Signed

Fern Acheson’s Dancing Orange Figures has a warmer sense of weight than its lighter Blue Figures counterpart. With the analogous shades of orange superimposed over the pitch-black background, there is a strong chiaroscuro contrast that emboldens the oranges with a radiant energy. The colours here vitalise the figures with fiery tones; the complementary, blue highlights provide a defining contrast that only incenses the warmth of the main pallet. 

In Fern’s characteristic style, the figures emerge from pairings of colour along the traced delimitations of a flowing line. Yet here, distinct shape is harder to discriminate. Bodies instead merge in a more cacophonous haze: making out the distinctions between bold crimsons and burning oranges is a more stimulating, even anxiety-inducing endeavour (especially over the impenetrable black of the background) than marking the blue shapes filling smooth, curved delineations in Fern’s other painting. But alongside this sense of urgent energy is a playful harmony. The overall, flowing shape created by the fluttering convergence of bodies sits with an aesthetic balance over the midnight background. There is a harmonious sense to the flaming glows over the darkness; the overall effect again is one of dancing light in beautiful balance. 

Whether the strong gouache colours induce a sense of fiery warmth or melancholic anxiety, the autumnal shades pair markedly well with Jules Bahieu’s (1860 - ?) Intérieur de Poulailles. As Bahieu’s chickens fill the canvas in playful, theatrical groups, Fern’s Orange Figures dance with the playful elegance of sweeping lines and harmonies of colour – both exult in the warm pallets of rusty reds, oranges, and beiges.