(40) Structural curves

#structuralcurves – noble grandeur

Arches are often associated with triumph, power and grandeur, commemorating a great event or in praise of a noble personage, supporting ideas of nationhood or commendable character traits.

However, arches are more commonly used to support structures, roofs, railways and roads – useful and utilitarian structures. The arches in my paintings incorporate the qualities of both aggrandisement and physical structural support, with a little something left to the imagination.

#structuralcurves – noble grandeur 02

These flying buttresses throw out their arms to support the cathedral’s walls; the structural tension is palpable and the structural curves graceful.

#structuralcurves – noble grandeur 01

This doorway on Lincoln Cathedral’s north side is a feast of decorative arches and curves that build an illusion of great depth while drawing the eye ever upwards. Only the door openings are structural, while the two outer arches elegantly fill what would otherwise have been a blank wall.