World Means You

Must like its partner, 'Breathe In, Breathe Out', the black paint on this glass artwork creates a mirror-like effect and allows the viewer to participate in the self-reflection that the artist experienced during UK lockdown when he created the piece. Reverse artist Richard Rowan wanted to resurrect a feeling of power and ambition through this piece and the beautifully detailed mountain represents his want to travel, climb and explore.

Richard says: "You can do anything, go anywhere, and see anything. The whole of nature is yours, it’s up to you what you do with it."

Using a selection of ingenious techniques to create his intricate and atmospheric artworks, Richard first selects a piece of music which he associates with a particular time and place. This was 'Findings' by August Willhelmsson for 'World Means You'. He then replays this music while he paints to evoke the surroundings and emotions he felt in the original landscape. At the same time, Richard uses his own revered technique of reverse painting onto glass. Starting with the foreground before painting backwards until all he can see is the vague strokes of his background, the artist is able to capture the minute details of stars against a raw backdrop of richly coloured skies; preserved within the layers of paint on glass.

Discover more about Richard's pioneering technique on our blog or view this calming artwork alongside its partner here.