It is very exciting to have a show of new work by Adam, which he has made especially for us.
These are works full of mystery and ambiguity. Adam distils and recovers his memory of a response to a particular landscape on a particular occasion, viewed through the evocation of a particular mood or mindset. Through layers of abstraction and translation. A dynamic interplay between the external and inner worlds.
Adam’s work is as pure and concise as it can possibly be. The sparse mark making and subdued palette eschews anything that isn’t necessary. The work may appear calm, reticent almost. Silent, almost mute. It whispers decorously and elegantly. It is a persuasive prelude.
While it may be possible, and comfortable to let one’s eye glance off the meticulous gnomic surfaces of these beautifully presented paintings, they mean to halt you in your tracks. They are full of a tense, tight energy. The self-possession is disquieting.
The stillness and concentration of Adam’s work can make you aware of the thump of your own heartbeat, the pull of your own thoughts. And they produce a bump of adrenalin which is unnerving but extremely bracing.
These paintings stare back unflinchingly. It is as if we are being recognized. Or found out.
Adam’s work is a revelation.
Adam lives and works in West Wales. His work is collected worldwide and is increasingly popular.