Incubator is pleased to present up dn, a solo exhibition of paintings by Paul Barlow.
White lightning hiding in a dark sky. An x-ray of a bone. Mycelium roots stretching outwards. A snuffed out candle. A soundwave. The mushroom cloud of an atomic bomb. A hurricane. Barlow’s paintings shift before your eyes, from the microscopic to the macrocosmic.
This body of work marks a significant departure for Barlow, who has transitioned from a vibrant use of colour to a profound monochromatic exploration of form and contrast. It is the tonal similarities between the paintings that draw out their distinctions, evoking a range of associations, from airwaves and cellular structures to anthropomorphic and aquatic forms. This fluidity speaks to Barlow’s fascination with the invisible processes that govern our sensory world — an idea inspired, in part, by cymatics, a school of experimentation that explores the mysterious and symmetrical forms that arise in vibrating liquids as if by magic.
Barlow’s meticulous process is another kind of alchemical experiment, instead with water, paint, and canvas. By using a single hue, diluted to various extents, he extracts a spectrum of tonal greys ranging from the bone-white of the raw canvas to deep, inky black. The result is a series of paintings where the languorous movement of smoke, the skeletal impressions of X-rays, and the delicate intricacies of mycelium are evocatively rendered by an unexpected movement of liquid across canvas. Each work invites a Rorschach-like experience, where familiar forms emerge from the abstract.
Interspersed within this monochromatic series are three vibrant works that hum with electric intensity. A mustard yellow painting echoes the repetitive motifs of the black paintings, while two purple-blue compositions remain centrally focused, their floating forms seem to hover and pulse, creating a psychological portal into an alternate reality. These vivid and isolated forms contrast sharply with the repetitive and often-vertical compositions of the black paintings that stretch to the edges of the canvas. Together, they highlight Barlow's mastery of both form and colour, offering a dynamic movement both laterally across the canvas and into the centre.
The artist’s approach is as much about the process as it is about the finished painting. With Barlow’s studio situated in South-East London on the Thames, it is difficult to ignore the relationship between Barlow’s practice and the natural ebb and flow of the river beside him. Barlow often works flat, allowing water to permeate the canvas before turning it in different directions. This method not only defines the resulting forms but also lends the paintings their characteristic delicacy, with each layer of paint bled, incredibly thinly, into the canvas rather than sitting on the surface. The subtle variations within the forms arrive by a combination of intention and surprise. This discovery process is fundamental to Barlow’s practice, which is devoid of preliminary sketches and driven by the spontaneity of material interactions. His repetitive and ritualistic practice suggests a sort of communion with the physical world, as though the paintings are attempting to uncover the hidden layers of reality, demystifying the randomness at the heart of material existence.