Helena Tarn Art

It’s here – its finally here! Both my new collection of paintings and my first ever blog post!!!

If you follow me on Instagram, you will have seen I’ve been in a painting frenzy with my new series of work that is heavily inspired by volcanoes. It is a series of canvas paintings of various sizes, each named after a rather fierce volcano from across the globe. Rather than a visual representation of a volcano, each painting is a bold abstraction which I’m hoping conveys the dramatic and chaotic energy which they are so famous for.

The series came about after a Saturday night in front of the telly during lockdown watching the National Geographic documentary Continent 7 about Antarctica (I clearly lead a very rock and roll life!). One of the teams was exploring Erebus, the southernmost active volcano in the world. It was absolutely mesmerising. My husband turned to me and said, ‘You should do some volcano paintings’, and suddenly the fire was lit (pun absolutely intended). I had also visited some really beautiful countries such as Iceland and Hawaii, well known for their dramatic volcanic scenery and I knew these would serve as a rich source of inspiration. I had also been experimenting with a more abstract from of painting and I figured that this style would really capture the energy I wanted to create.

″… I can hardly believe my eyes. Who would have ever imagined, under this terrestrial crust, an ocean with ebbing and flowing tides, with winds and storms?”

Jules Verne – Journey to the Centre of the Earth

There are volcanoes on every continent, even Antarctica. Some 1500 volcanoes are still considered potentially active today. During the painting of this series in spring 2021, four major volcanoes erupted; in Iceland, St Vincent, Hawai’i and Democratic Republic of Congo. A reminder of both the fragility and immensely awe-inspiring power of our planet.

I called the collection of work ‘LAZE’. Not a made up word, I promise – haha!! Laze is a combination of the words lava and haze and is the product of a chemical reaction that happens when molten lava hits the ocean. It seemed pretty apt to describe the chaotic energy and explosive force of nature that I wanted to embody in the series. There are lots of bold brush strokes and vibrant pops of colour in these ones. Each painting incorporates several layers of thinned colour, signifying the earth’s crust. These layers are then juxtaposed with opaque and bold brushstrokes to depict a raw and chaotic energy that really grabs your attention. This series is definitely not one for the faint hearted.

So far, six paintings have been released – Erebus (Antarctica), Kīlauea (Hawaii), Snæfellsjökull (Iceland), Nyiragongo (Democratic Republic of Congo), La Soufrière (St Vincent) and Fagradalsfjall (Iceland – still erupting as of August 2021!!). For more information about each painting please see the collection page on my website.

The collection is being released in two stages. The next set of ‘LAZE’ paintings will be released later this month – August 2021! Make sure to subscribe to my newsletter to be the first to see what I’ve been up to before the general release!

Thanks so much – until next time!