The Veil Nebula

Acrylic on canvas 60 x 120cm

A stunning lacework of magnificent, vibrant colours, how could I not be motivated to attempt to capture the innate beauty and delicacy of this aptly named nebula. The blues, purples, yellows and reds, encircled by and threading through a sheer veil of lace.

Originally discovered in 1784, the secret beauty of this nebula has been gradually discovered over time. The Veil is a cloud of heated ionised gas and dust about 36 times the area of the moon. Hubble images indicate oxygen, sulfur and hydrogen in rope or lacework intertwined filaments.

Crab Nebula 3

Acrylic on Canvas 100 x 100cm

The Crab Nebula is the first celestial constellation inspiration I found from the NASA photos of our universe.  When I came across the Crab Nebula, I was enthralled. My favourite colours of blue, green and red, encapsulated into what looked to me like a remnant of starburst or explosion. Inspired to try and reproduce the pattern, colours and structure of the nebula in my work, I found I was developing a style as I attempted the painting and learnt to experiment with colours and dot sizes.

The Crab Nebula is a supernova in the constellation of Taurus. It was named in the late 1800s when early telescopes made it look like a crab. It is not visible to the naked eye. It emits pulses of radiation from gamma rays to radio waves and is generally the brightest persistent source in the sky.

Tarantula Nebula

Print only 100 x 100cm

The Tarantula Nebula has an irresistible luminocity, with an active starburst region, that I just had to try and capture in paint. It unleashes a torrent of ultraviolet light and stellar winds that gradually eat away at the hydrogen gas cloud where the stars are born. Inspired to try and reproduce the vibrancy of the colours, the energy and movement that, to me, depicts pure turmoil.

Discovered in 1753, the name Tarantula arose in the mid 20th century due to deep photographic exposures.

Lagoon Nebula

Acrylic on canvas 90 x 90cm

The colossal Lagoon Nebula, discovered in 1654, is 4000 light years away. I’ve attempted to capture the bright core of the vast stellar nursery emitting its powerful ultraviolet radiation as an active star nursery and the impact of the hurricane stellar winds upon the giant cloud of gas and dust.