Mark Francis – Microscopic Studies

Mark Francis is an Irish painter who is known for his almost scientific abstracts featuring such things as molecules and nuclei often portrayed in muted colours. From 1994 he frequently featured black dots in his work which, like our theme for this month, appear to float and swarm around the canvas like dark looming bubbles. Francis worked with microscopic imagery from many scientific backgrounds including funghi, astronomy and medicine.

Negative
oil on canvas
(243.8 x 214.6) cm.

Compression study
oil on canvas
(76 x 91.5) cm.

Division
oil on canvas
(91.5 x 91.5) cm.

Working with the idea in Francis’ work, why not look at some microscopic photographs and use them for inspiration for your paintings. Here are some microscopic images of pharmaceuticals and here are some insects. Let’s get those imaginations going!