Distant Sounds

Delaney’s jewel-like paintings are inspired by her fascination with the interplay of light and colour: the opalescent reflections of sunlight on water, the iridescent sheen of birds’ feathers. Many of her works are small, inviting the viewer to draw close in order to enjoy the intricate surfaces. She suffered a serious sight injury that prevented her from painting during the 1980’s. As she recovered her sight, she experienced a renewed sensitivity to sensations of light and colour in landscape. She wrote:
“I try to depict in paint, as directly as possible, the intense and glorious sensation of light on glass, water, white walls…”
“I don’t make sketches in the traditional sense. My drawings and paintings work independently but in parallel ways. Like the traditional tribal artists, I feel that preliminary sketches would drain the main works energy, or in their case, magic potency”.
“I also make lots of tiny, rough, not-like drawings on scraps of paper to keep hold of any only too fleeting ideas!”