Holden does that in this exciting new series where he has meticulously hand-made eighteen geometric panels, uniquely crafted in a way that they can interconnect like a puzzle, or stand alone as individual pieces.

Holden’s paintings are a continuation of the themes explored throughout his artistic practice, based on photographs taken whilst travelling all over the world. The photographs re-ignite certain memories of objects and places in the artist, which he then compresses down to pure colour planes. As in his previous screen-prints, the colours and patterns are not incidental nor studies in pure colour, but represent a memory or impression of a real place, time, object, or pattern he has encountered during his travels.

‘‘I am taking brief moments in time and compressing them down to the penultimate moment before they are gone’’ However, unlike his print works, through painting, Holden is able to allow his brushstrokes to be visible as they run in different directions across the surface, making a unique impression on the panel - a way for the artist to leave his individual mark on each piece. This seems apt considering the pieces are deeply embedded in the artist’s own memories and experiences.

As abstracts, Holden’s work poses viewers with a unique challenge not often seen in other colour-field art, which has traditionally been non-objective and not based on anything tangible. In contrast to this, Holden’s work has always been grounded in the physical world, or at least his own impression of it. Based on very personal experiences, Holden’s work challenge audiences to decode where the colours come from, how they relate and what they mean. This is perhaps why Holden gives small hints in his titles where he uses numbers to refer to the precise moment that the image was taken (as recorded on his camera), alongside words that either literally refer to an object or place, or hint at it in a partly veiled message to his audience.

For Holden, this association with the real world also creates challenging restrictions in the way he can compose his paintings, and in the colours he choses. There is no colour for colour’s sake, or patterns that are purely invented. Instead, Holden must allow the real memory and the photographic image source to guide him. In some cases the memories reflected can be straight forward - such as Honda CG125 (10:32:52) from a particular type of motorcycle that Holden repeatedly saw throughout his travels.

Other times, the work is made up of more complex images and memories, which can only be decoded by the artist himself. The Fifteenth of the First (02:55:15) is from the first picture taken of the artist’s son, Harvey, soon after he was born. Here, Holden brings together several elements of that moment just after birth - including the blood of his partner, the skin tones of the baby, the colour of the cot, the blue of the hospital curtain, and the flashing lights of the monitors. Holden is able to present this very complex and emotional memory in its simplest form so that even a painting as abstract as this one, can immediately draw his memory of what he saw, where he saw it, and how he felt at that time.

In this first series of paintings, Holden has created eighteen individual panels for Eyestorm. The intention is for the paintings to work as singular pieces, as a full set of eighteen, or as any number of combinations in between. They seem to fit together like a puzzle, yet the artist sets no rules on how they should be grouped. This is because all of the works relate to one another in some way, forming a kind of abstract map of the Holden’s life and experiences, yet also each representing a single memory: A street kid in Kyrgyzstan in Tank Top (06:24:25), a girl offering him a fish whilst stuck in the middle of the Amazon in This Will Keep Him Interested (15:21:20); or canoeing down a crocodile infested river in Ethiopia in Crocodile Market (12:17:17).

Holden hopes that throughout his practice he will continue developing this series so that eventually, they could come together to create one giant piece. As an artist who is continually evolving, challenging himself and his audience - we eagerly anticipate what he does next.

The nine painting are all interlocking and can be purchased in any combination. You can see new painting by Ross Holden on his artist page here