“Araby”

"Araby" was inspired by a haunting sense of nostalgia for the imaginative spirit behind the "Alf Layla wa Layla", the tales of the "1,001 Nights" that Parhelion read in his boyhood. Hence the colours invoking the sense of the Arabian deserts, the occasional slash of oasis green, & the arcs, curls, and slashes of paint expressing imagination, fantasy, and emotion. These strokes also express the darting ephemera of storytelling in flight. Acrylic paint's quick-drying immediacy was very important to achieving an effect of emotional directness in getting the story across. Scattered across and mingled with the paint are handfuls of Caribbean beach sand (representing the deserts of Araby) & Arabica coffee grounds.