Barrio Escalante, San José

Visits by appointment only

Schedule a visit (opens the scheduler)
Trance Submarino, by Deirdre Hyde. A monumental cross-section unfolds the passage between two realms breathing in unison: the atmospheric fury of the surface and the abyssal weightlessness below.

Deirdre Hyde

Trance Submarino

Technique
Acrylic/Canvas
Dimensions
250 × 75 cm
Status
Available
Palette
navy blue, luminous turquoise, storm grey, foam white, crimson red
Brushwork
Polished and blended brushstroke modeling aquatic light gradations, combined with dense impasto and rough ridges in the sea foam.

Curatorial analysis

A monumental cross-section unfolds the passage between two realms breathing in unison: the atmospheric fury of the surface and the abyssal weightlessness below. The extreme verticality of the format, structured as a vertical triptych two and a half meters high, commands a dizzying visual plunge that guides the gaze from dense, leaden storm clouds down to the blue silence of the ocean depths.

At the summit, a frigatebird with an inflated scarlet pouch glides through a tempestuous sky, providing the sole warm and strident accent against the gale. Below it, a curved wave rears up violently and shatters into a crest of luminous foam, its tactile texture contrasting with the tense calm beginning mere inches underneath. The waterline acts as a diaphanous threshold, silencing the surface tumult to reveal a world in suspension.

The descent into the deep is anchored by the colossal mass of a humpback whale diving headfirst. The rendering of underwater light articulates the cetacean's ventral pleats and flukes through subtle turquoise reflections and cerulean gradients. Along the left margin, a vertical sequence of translucent, ctenophore-like organisms drifts upward like ethereal lanterns, while a pair of manta rays glides across the lower twilight.

The painting transcends mere natural history illustration by transforming the abyss into a contemplative state. The pigment meticulously charts the physical density of the water, deepening the blues into an enveloping darkness where oceanic vastness and creaturely scale dissolve any conventional sense of earthly time.

Trance Submarino

More works by Deirdre Hyde

8 works

Available works

Sold and historical

Similar works

By subject, palette and style

Message the gallery on WhatsApp

Cookies

We use cookies to learn how the site is used and to show the gallery's ads on other platforms. They are only turned on if you accept them.