Oliver, 2026
Acrylic and ink on canvas150 x 105 cm
59 1/8 x 41 3/8 inches
In Oliver (2026), a tangle of black line hangs in a patch of gold. Reminiscent of a Gordian knot the form was inspired by a broken phone charger Myatt owned, which had been knotted and left on the side by his partner. Below this, a lightly outlined hand, cropped at the wrist, is draw on paper and pasted on the canvas, resting beside a dense black form. The figure is partial and tender, as though glimpsed, rather than posed. Warm yellows and soft white patches seem to hold the two apart and draw them together, and a spiral at lower left answers the knot above. The painting weaves intimacy and complication closely together, yet leaves open whether entanglement promises closeness, capture – or both.
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