Natural Motifs: Art by David Keane
Hidden trace, oil and pen on wood
David Keane is a mixed media artist based in Conamara on the west coast of Ireland. David’s paintings and illustrations overwhelmingly feature woodland animals, trees, and other natural motifs.
David’s recent series, Tales from phantom forest is very aptly named. The images almost all feature silhouetted or slightly blurred trees and animal figures, sometimes rendered in loose oil paint and sometimes cut out of newspaper or other mixed media. I really enjoy the way David uses a mostly earthy color palette and this slightly ethereal imagery to create a really strong sense of narrative both in the individual images and throughout the entire series.
David's Tales from phantom forest painting gallery
I also rather enjoy David’s most recent oil paintings. These works depart from the artist’s usual neutral-leaning color palette and instead take a more saturated, almost psychedelic approach. Still using the visual language of trees and forest animals, David draws out an entirely different interpretation, creating an alien reflection of a familiar world.
