Expression of Contemplation
Series 0
Abstract painter, Squamish, British Columbia
Steve Baylis
Steve Baylis is an abstract painter in Squamish, British Columbia. He works in oil and cold wax on Baltic birch panel. A single painting takes about six months: ten layers of glaze and thousands of intentional brushstrokes.
Baylis begins with the panel itself. He stains and bleaches Baltic birch so the grain remains visible, then builds the surface through ten transparent glazes and successive brushstrokes, moving from broad shapes to the smallest highlights. The sequence gives him a route back when the work becomes uncertain and enough structure to work intuitively.
One work from each series
Series 0, Series 1, Series 2, Series 3.
Expression of Contemplation sets dark and bright marks against warm ochre. Enduring Dissolution concentrates pale marks within a cool blue-green square. Visceral Reasoning extends green, violet, and grey across a horizontal field. Infinite Closure distributes pale blue, grey, pink, and green across a high-key ground.
Expression of Contemplation
Series 0
Enduring Dissolution
Series 1
Visceral Reasoning
Series 2
Infinite Closure
Series 3