Carolynda Macdonald's paintings are works of grace and beauty. She has chosen a subject about which she is passionate and as a result her studies of flowers take care to convey the smallest detail, like the curl at the end of a leaf, or the fleshy, smooth texture of a tulip petal. It has been said that these are life-affirming works, and indeed they are, but recently there have been changes creeping in, almost unnoticed on first viewing. That beautifully rendered tulip has now sprouted rose leaves, and a multicoloured arrangement on closer inspection is in fact a single plant. These changes allude to deeper levels within the paintings. They are much more than simple studies of flowers. The shelf becomes a stage onto which a great diva struts, her lungs filled to capacity, ready to unleash the contents of her soul on a trembling audience, or a multi-faceted plant seems to bubble with colourful life, bringing to mind the revolving sound of a fairground carousel.

Carolynda Macdonald worked for years as a stained glass artist, and her paintings seem to benefit from this. She uses oils and applies the paint in thin layers, allowing the white ground to glow through the translucent colour, heightening its intensity and sense of spirituality. Some of her paintings have a Zen-like quality as they seek a calm order; still waters in an increasingly chaotic world, while others explode with fiery red, volcanic passion. She has opened the door to an exciting inner world and we are fortunate that she decides to show us what she has found there.