Triptych 1979

This triptych by Kit Williams is painted with detailed precision and a quirky imagination. There’s a clear love of storytelling here, a narrative unfolding across three panels with a cast of characters that seem plucked from a dream. The texture is smooth and almost seamless, which gives it an ethereal quality, like looking into a world that exists just beyond our own. But it’s the way Williams uses color that really draws me in. The soft, muted tones create a sense of nostalgia, as if we’re looking at a faded memory or an old photograph. Then, a bright leotard bursts from the panel! Look at the figure tumbling through the air in the right-hand panel, the movement is so dynamic! It’s like a snapshot of pure, unbridled energy that contrasts with the other more static figures. Williams is a master of illusion, the painting makes me think of Magritte, but with a bit of English whimsy. His treasure hunt books are something to behold. Ultimately, the art welcomes us into a world where anything is possible, and invites us to embrace the beauty of ambiguity.