Capsaicin

Capsaicin is a 50 × 41 cm acrylic on canvas from 2010, one of the most vividly coloured works in Walt Viviers' early catalogue. The title names the compound that gives chillies their heat, and the painting channels that same intensity: tropical Bird of Paradise blooms and lush foliage are rendered in saturated oranges, reds, yellows, and deep greens, the forms building across the canvas in a dense, overlapping tangle that crackles with chromatic energy. The composition's warmth is almost physical. A layered, heavily worked surface gives the painting real presence, and the balance between the fiery florals and the cool greens of the tropical leaves creates a tension that holds the eye. The original is available for acquisition.