Plump, pillow-like forms upon which I yearn to rest my head soften Annabel Faustin’s paintings of audacious colour and clean lines. I find comfort in the works of ‘Travel inside my heart’ more than I can comprehend. Maybe now is the time to embrace the calming power of undemanding or forgiving shape? Despite not spending a significant amount of time with these works, and whilst my visual knowledge of them is only digital, they have left a lingering and ghostly impression on my mind. I have become attuned to, and am soothed by, the roundedness of form and painterly rhythms.

Whilst I recognise that the paintings are independent from me, I remain acutely aware of their existence outside of my everyday life. They are full, rich, and leave no questions unanswered. Faustin’s inspired universe is entirely accounted for within each paintings parameter. The artworks are self- contained. There is nothing left outside of the paintings despite the fact that many are seeming close-ups, or offer views from compositional windows. I remain confident that I am receiving all the information; Faustin is generous with her imagery. Fullness and assuredness are characteristics that satisfy me as a viewer, and ones that I seek for myself and in others generally. To feel a wholeness, or completeness, is to heal. These are the kind of artworks that I long to live with.

‘A Nostalgic Afternoon’ from 2021 transports me to the rolling hills depicted. I can hear the wind that carries the clouds and rustles the pines. The subject is one with the landscape; they form a harmonious union in which both parties thrive. Light and warmth emanates. A palette of blues and greens further stimulate the senses, and the mirroring techniques that the artist employs through the painting builds more breathing space. Faustin has constructed a symmetry that doesn’t suffocate with rigidity. Instead, the painting moves and re-moulds with each contemplation. This artwork, along with all others in this exhibition, reminds me to exhale.