Patrick Shirvington Charles Blackman (secret of the golden flower)

‘Trying to capture the man, Charles Blackman, is best left to art historians and his paintings,’ says Patrick Shirvington. ‘I have always had a great admiration for Charles Blackman, for his obvious compassion, his deep understanding and his knowledge of people and places. Through his depiction of loneliness in children, shown through shadowy rooms or against a background of darkened streets, we look for that glimmer of light that is ever present.’

Says Shirvington: ‘Painting Charles semi-reclining enabled me to suspend him in a sort of dream world or a semi-conscious state, allowing drifts of light to penetrate his room from different directions. “Secret of the golden flower” (a reference to Carl Jung) is the secret of giving oneself over to one’s dreams.’