I’m a big fan of 20th century American painter Richard Diebenkorn – large areas of colour broken up or underscored with fine lines, paintings that might be representational or almost totally abstract. I’ve looked for those kinds of contrasts in the works I’ve chosen for this curation.

Maz Dixon’s figures have pencil lines visible beneath the paint. Belinda Nadwie’s painterly chaos is interlaced with fine lines and drips. George Hall’s painting is almost a colour field, but is comprised of thousands of careful brushstrokes.

Other works in the collection were chosen for their energy, their drawing and painting skills, or simply for their beauty. I hope you enjoy it!

Ben is a top selling artist on Bluethumb. Residing in the Blue Mountains, his work often draws upon themes of literature and pop culture. His signature pieces are distorted versions of Penguin book covers. The paintings are distorted representations of the subject matter, transformed with thick brushstrokes and often random lettering, retaining the essence of the original but also becoming something new.

Ben holds a Bachelor of Arts (Fine Arts) from the University of Western Sydney.