This painting was inspired by the song Just Like Heaven, originally written by Robert Smith of The Cure, but the version that stayed with me most is the acoustic cover by The Lumineers. Slower and more tender, it lets the lyrics breathe, and somehow their meaning deepens. There's a softness to it, but also a sense of emotional intensity-like the kind that leaves you dizzy.
Smith once described the song capturing the feeling of hyperventilating, kissing, and fainting all at once-a rush of romance that overwhelms the senses. I wanted to paint that feeling.
The sky in this piece holds that emotion: a blue that feels almost watery, with soft bursts of cloud, like a mind flooded with feeling. A dizzy spell rendered in colour. That moment where the heart races faster than the mind can keep up, and everything-the sky, the light, the air feels like it's shimmering just a little beyond reality.
Beeswax, damar resin, dry pigments and shellac on cradled wood panel.
