Sikelela Owen’s paintings present candid figures immersed in hazy landscapes, often in repose or unassuming moments of connection. She captures the essence of being and the fluctuating nature of kinship, intimacy and isolation. The use of lime greens and warm browns is quintessential to her practice, washed over the canvas in layers that evoke movement and dynamism. The visible, expressive brushstrokes convey the artist’s desire to capture fleeting states of calm and the brief moments of existence when we cease to be self-aware. The translucency of the paint has a glowing effect, light seems to be shining from behind the canvas, peaking through the figures as if illuminated from within.

By omitting revealing elements of the surrounding area, her figures possess a celestial and timeless quality; we can feel the truthfulness of the moment though the context remains ambiguous. The artist utilizes the titles of her works as an opportunity to anchor them to her personal reality. She portrays lived moments of real people, but with a remoteness that allows us to recognise these scenes as akin to our own memories.

Owen taps into the universal experience of at once being connected yet alone, and the dichotomy of love and solitude. Her depictions of children emanate the innocence and purity of youth. The moment calls attention to the emotional depth of a child’s experience, giving recognition and validation to feelings which are often undermined or looked past. Her continued fascination with childhood blends her observations of her children with memories of her own youth, exploring the cyclical nature of life and the feelings that connect us.