I painted this collection while I was moving. Mexico City to Lisbon, the chaos of adapting to a new landscape, a new light. I set up the studio in a small garden and watched the seasons pass through the window while I worked.

I start the ground as dark as I can. Then I work back towards the light.

The canvas gets flooded. Water, soap, pigment, more water. I love it when the water is dirty, it keeps things rough, and it stops me controlling the outcome. Washing a piece down is how I let something go.

Some pigments take longer to diffuse, so while the surface is still cooking, I scrape back into it and force the drip. I call that the melancholia of the tears.

Then the rice paper. Printed with oil, laid over, torn, melted, relaid.

The last move is always the risky one. I call it the surgery: Seconds to move the paper before it breaks. I risk everything.

Indigo, urucum, brass nails, cotton and jute woven in Brazil and Mexico. Hands, mostly.

A cluttered garage with open window letting sunlight in, tools hanging on the wall, and various objects scattered on the floor, including a plastic bag, a bucket, and some small items.
Abstract artwork with metallic textures and iridescent colors, featuring a central dark streak, encased in a black frame.
Abstract artwork with metallic textures and iridescent colors, featuring a central dark streak, encased in a black frame.
Close-up of several worn and torn red paint samples on a textured surface, with patches of white and black visible underneath.
A stack of torn red paper or cardboard on a gray concrete floor.
Close-up of torn red and pink paper strips layered and textured, creating an abstract pattern.
A rotting, torn green leaf with red and yellow markings, lying flat on a multicolored, textured surface.
Person wearing a hat, black face mask, and brown and black clothing, standing in front of a wall with red circular patterns featuring symbols.
Wooden picture frame leaning against a wall with sunlight streaming through a window, casting shadows on the floor.
A black and white photo of a dried plant on a table with various objects including rocks, a small geometric ornament, and a ruler, on a rough textured surface.
A person with a tattooed arm and wearing rings is painting an abstract artwork using a brush on a canvas with green, red, and yellow paint.
Person painting a red and blue patterned artwork outdoors, leaning over the artwork on the ground, partially shaded by trees.
Close-up photo of a weathered, pinkish-red surface with multiple cracks, irregularities, and small raised bumps.
First-person view of a person standing on a red painted floor, wearing black shoes splattered with yellow, green, and pink paint. The person's feet are visible in the bottom of the frame.
Close-up view of an abstract painting on canvas featuring large areas of reddish-brown, blue, and beige paint with textured brushstrokes and splatters.
A storage shelf in a garage or workshop stocked with cans of paint and various painting supplies, with tools hanging beneath the shelf.
An artist's workspace in a dimly lit room with a person sitting at a table, working on a painting. The workspace includes a computer, various art supplies, and artwork on the walls.
A collection of framed vintage-style posters with abstract and artistic designs, leaning against a wall with a shadow on the beige carpeted floor.
Abstract art piece with red circular patterns on a rough textured surface, with blue and black accents, creating a layered and dynamic visual effect.
A colorful wall with splatters of paint in various colors including pink, green, orange, yellow, and black. The wall has a textured and artistic appearance, and there is a wooden floor at the bottom of the image.
A lime green painted wooden surface with a decorative border pattern at the bottom and faint vertical brush strokes.
Person working on a wood project, standing on a ladder, wearing a cap, sleeveless vest, and paint-stained pants in a workshop with wood and wall in background.
Person wearing a sleeveless denim jacket with paint stains, standing in front of a colorful, textured wall with red, green, and pink tones.
A person working on a wooden framework, possibly construction or carpentry, in black and white.
A wooden display case containing nine colorful textured art pieces in shades of red, orange, and green.
Person with dark hair wearing a black beret and denim jacket facing a decorative red and gold patterned wall in an art gallery.
A wooden frame grid with colorful paper or fabric inside each square, resting on a wooden surface in a workshop or studio, with blurred background of containers and tools.
A scrap piece of wood nailed to a wooden plank with a decorative pattern cut into it. The wood has some holes and visible grain, placed on a rough, stained concrete or dirt surface.
Close-up of a rusty, peeling metal surface with orange and dark patches, showing cracks and textured layers.
Black and white photo of an art gallery or exhibit space with framed artworks leaning against the wall and a patterned rug on the floor.
Black and white photo of an art gallery or exhibit space with framed artworks leaning against the wall and a patterned rug on the floor.

Yantras was made in Mexico City, on a press I built into the studio wall.

The whole studio wall was the mechanism a hinged folding press, the block prints painted and the top folded down onto the canvas so the surface meets the block. It is the oldest way to print something, and I wanted the oldest way.

Before any of that, the canvas is stretched and then painted and washed over and over, twenty times, more, with dyes and water until the colour is no longer a colour I chose but something that happened. That flooding is the reality of the piece: fluid, impermanent, out of my control.

Then the symbols. Hand-carved into wood, stamped in oil, placed with total discipline onto a ground that had none. Those are the virtues we integrate when we stop resisting and accept.

Reds carry pain and love. Greens carry surrender and healing.

The frames are part of the work, not around it, carved by hand with yantras running the perimeter of every piece.

An indoor room with red artwork on the wall, a large distressed wooden frame or structure, and some art supplies or tools on a table.
A colorful handcrafted piece, possibly a fabric or painted artwork, featuring geometric patterns and green borders, with hints of rust, blue, and brown colors.
A colorful handcrafted piece, possibly a fabric or painted artwork, featuring geometric patterns and green borders, with hints of rust, blue, and brown colors.
A stencil with a geometric pattern in red and white on a work surface, with a person’s bare feet and painted legs visible in the lower left corner.
Close-up of a worn, painted wall with a partially torn green curtain or fabric hanging at the bottom, showing reddish-brown, green, and beige paint patches.
A floor with splattered paint and a small puddle of a pinkish-orange liquid, with blue fragments and a gray rubber mat nearby.
Close-up of a wooden surface with carved decorative edges and geometric patterns.
Part of a colorful, patterned wall with a blue section featuring a silver geometric design, alongside a beige section and a multicolored edge.
Close-up of a corner of a painted wooden surface with various paint splatters and smudges.
A spilled red liquid with a Christmas tree-shaped cutout decoration on a marble surface.
Close-up of a wooden surface with a curved wooden edge, covered in dark red paint or stain, with paint splatters and wet streaks on the floor.
Hand with tattoos and rings on a red textured surface with a partially visible word 'CREATIVE' engraved.
Abstract artwork with red and black paint, featuring textures and patterns with swirling and splattered effects.
A large rectangular red painting on a white wooden stand in a room with white walls and concrete floor.
An art studio with a large abstract painting on an easel, surrounded by red decorative mats on shelves and a wooden workbench.
An air hockey table with a green and red playing surface, set up in a room with a colorful, abstract wall and some shelving with red and beige objects in the background.
Three scrolls featuring intricate, symmetrical geometric patterns, laid out on a surface with a woven mat partially visible in the background.
Woodblock print yantras at my studio
Congruence Indigo - Oil — Acrylic — Indigo on canvas — Wood frame
A decorative wall featuring vintage metal panels with intricate cut-out designs, including diamond shapes and floral motifs, painted in shades of red, teal, and beige with weathered and distressed finishes.
A collage of colorful, patterned papers with various designs, arranged on a textured background.
Various sheets of patterned paper in orange, yellow, and green hues on a dark surface.
Block print sample book of patterns yantras
Close-up of a wood carving block with intricate geometric patterns carved into the surface.
A woodworking jig for making picture frames or similar rectangular wooden frames, set on a hardwood floor, with clamps and adjustable guides.
A wooden ruler with engraved measurement markings and decorative symbols, placed on a dark surface.
Close-up of an old wooden clock with carved decorative patterns, featuring a winding mechanism and gear on a wooden surface with cloth and other background items.
Yantras pieces in the studio after stretched
Interior of a room with red, green, and black walls, decorated with geometric patterns and traditional motifs, and a plant in the foreground.
Decorative interior space with a dark wooden table, floral arrangement, and colorful painted wall panels; hanging pendant lights above.
Pieces of Yantra painting before shipping
Stylized handwritten text that says 'Requests' above and 'Practise' below, with artistic, sharp strokes.