Late Pastels I
Pale Fire
pastel on paper
76 x 61.5 cm
2019
La Danse Macabre
pastel on paper
59 x 46 cm
2019
Senegal Sun
pastel on paper
59 x 46 cm
2018
Spirit Dance
pastel on paper
61 x 46 cm
2018
Untitled ii
pastel on paper
61 x 45.5 cm
2019
Bach On The Violin
pastel on paper
61 x 46 cm
2018
Chamber Music
pastel on paper
61 x 46 cm
2018
City Meadow
pastel on paper
61 x 46 cm
2018
Desert Dance
pastel on paper
61 x 46 cm
2018
This final series of pastel drawings, begun by Tom Phillips in 2018 was completed shortly before his death in 2022. Sheets of paper were stapled directly onto the wall of the studio then the pastel was applied very loosely before Phillips worked into the drawing using an erasure pencil to define the forms leaving traces of pigment beneath. Increasingly earth colours predominate. Over time the works accumulated as a group, collectively developing a language. Those works with titles frequently reference the abiding theme of music, and, as a response to music, dance.