Description
Summer Longing — Oil on Canvas, 450 × 600 mm
Oil on Canvas
45 × 60 cm
R8 000
Summer Longing is an intimate portrait of a young woman, her face turned gently towards us with a thoughtful, faraway expression. Julie Tugwell builds the features from small planes of warm and cool colour — ochre, rose, soft green and shadowed blue — so the skin seems to hold light and feeling rather than a smooth, literal likeness.
Behind the figure, a loose drift of pale blossom in whites, silvery blues and touches of pink dissolves into an almost abstract haze. The soft background pushes the sitter forward and lends the painting its tender, dreaming mood, as though she is caught in a private moment of reflection on a warm afternoon.
Worked in oil with expressive, confident brushwork, the portrait is quiet and emotionally warm rather than showy. Its restrained scale and gentle palette make it a lovely, personal piece for a bedroom, study or intimate corner, where its atmosphere of stillness and longing can be enjoyed close up. A characterful original for collectors drawn to the human face.
Style
Julie Tugwell is a contemporary South African artist whose work shares qualities with expressive, painterly traditions, favouring energetic brushwork and an emotional response to her subject over strict realism. In her portraits she is drawn to mood and inner life, building the face from broken colour and gesture to capture feeling rather than a literal likeness. Whether working in bold colour or a more restrained, tonal palette, she brings atmosphere and humanity to her subjects, creating original artworks with warmth, character and considered sophistication for contemporary interiors.
Please note: Images are provided as a guide to the artwork’s size and style. As each original painting is photographed under different lighting conditions and viewed on different screens, colours may vary slightly from the original artwork.
