The power of colours

A selection of paintings by Ailon Freedman in our online art gallery

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I paint purely to see the intrinsic beauty of colours

To see them dance with one another

To see their never-ending possibilities and the relationships that exist between them

I did not create these colours, they already exist

All that I do as an artist is to play with them

I let the colours express what I’m feeling at the time

Each painting has a different mood, a different flavour

Each one expresses a slightly different state of being

Sometimes fiery and passionate

Other times silent, serene and tranquil

These colours possess innate powers

The power to uplift

The power to stimulate

The power to soothe

And the power to En-light-en you

You could say that I’m a colourful guy

Yet I’m only expressing what I see and feel all around me

I’m just in love with colour and all that I do is express my love

Yes, these are Heart paintings

Paintings from my heart and my soul

My artistic career arose quite spontaneously after an art workshop in Poona entitled ‘Zen and the Art of Oil Painting’. We were given two canvases for 4 days and told to paint over and over whatever we had done before. The process blasted open the creative channel within me and I carried on painting in my spare time.

When I came back to London with ‘my etchings’, friends, family and even the owner of the local art store commissioned works from me. I realised that I may be onto something here, and spent the next 5 years painting full-time in London, Mexico and New York, and exhibiting in galleries, cafes, nightclubs and private homes.

When I look at my work, I see certain themes arising that are way beyond any conscious intention. There are plenty of moons, there are suns and mandalas, there are elements of the DNA chromosome (as well as sperms and eggs), there is a colourful, cathartic madness that often looks like cells under the microscope, and occasionally faces and figures pop up too.

With the exception of the mandalas, I don’t set out with an intention. I just try to translate my feelings through colour, and by adopting quite a freestyle approach, I am continuously surprised by what shows up. Painting in this way is like participating in the mystery – as Osho clearly says – and although goals and ambitions arise, I have to constantly release my grip on what the painting wants to be. It’s a bit like working out a puzzle, and I keep going until the ‘Aha’ arises and I have a feeling that ‘it is done’.