Angelique Trouve
My work has developed through an exploration of portraiture and emotion, influenced by an interest in how materials and processes can be used to convey feeling and movement. I began working primarily with charcoal, focusing on the human face to capture expression and emotional presence. Over time, I introduced colour and layering, which allowed my work to shift into a mixed media approach where emotion became more closely linked to texture and colours, making it more visible and direct.
I began working with a range of printmaking processes, including lino, screenprinting and monoprinting. I was particularly interested in how these methods preserve the structure of a portrait while remaining fluid and unpredictable. Using my hands to draw and paint was central in my process as it allowed marks and traces to be visible and expressive. These methods encouraged me to step outside my comfort zone and embrace uncertainty, allowing my pieces to distort or dissolve through layering and manipulation. Vibrant colours also became an important part of my work as they intensified emotion and energy, even when form was less clearly defined.
To continue exploring motion and fluidity beyond portraiture, I was drawn to presenting water through paint and installations. Using colour, transparency, movement and light, I aimed to convey emotion in a less literal way. My work reflects an evolving engagement with process as a means of expression, where emotion is communicated not only through the subject, but through mark-making, layers, gestures and the physical traces of making.