GEOFF Clifford is exploring the relationship of light and water in his exhibition at Café 68, Gillygte, York.

“A personal fascination with light through water, down below the surface, dates back many years,” he says. “More recently I’ve looked at patterns of light on the water surface, often related to reflections.

“These images of the shapes and patterns are all based on the momentary happenings in natural surroundings. I find that acrylic inks and acrylic colours are ideally suited to the vivid hues and contrasts of the subject.”

All the work displayed is painted using acrylics on high-quality watercolour papers, 140lb and above, sometimes hand made.

“It’s worth noting that acrylic inks and paints are known for their excellent lightfast qualities,” says Geoff.

His work is grounded in landscape and architecture. “I’m particularly taken with the geometry of structures and when people come into the paintings they are participants in a strictly controlled drama, sometimes more clearly stated than at others.

“The larger landscapes also dwell on formal relationships. Sometimes the geometry takes over and I become more interested in the abstract relationships of lines of colour.”

As a counter to this, Geoff began to paint small plein air landscapes, which he still does.

“Latterly I’ve been working on a series of paintings about York Minster; about rather than of the Minster,” he says. “The work is derived from observation drawing, not photographs. Here the vastness of scale and the design-discipline offer themselves as a field for exploration.”

Geoff taught art full time for 36 years, mostly in Oxford, before retiring in 2004. He moved to York in 2007, since when he has exhibited at According To McGee, Artestee, Newgate Gallery and Grays Court.

His latest York show runs until July 1 and all pieces are for sale.