JChadima

Carnation (Œillet), painted in spring 2026, develops from JCHADIMA’s observation of the richly coloured carnations found in the flower markets of Paris. The intense variety of colour, intricate edges, and layered textures of the blooms provide the starting point for an abstract investigation into colour, form, rhythm, and sensory perception.

The composition transforms the characteristic structure of the carnation into a series of soft, overlapping organic forms. Petal edges become flowing contours, while layers of colour fold into one another to create movement and depth. Pale whites establish a luminous ground, interrupted by passages of fuchsia, yellow, and warmer tones that bring energy and visual tension to the composition.

As in JCHADIMA’s wider practice, observation becomes transformation. The flower is not treated as a botanical specimen but as a source of visual information from which the artist extracts line, shape, texture, colour, and movement. The recognizable carnation gradually dissolves into an abstract language, allowing the viewer to experience the complexity of the flower without requiring a literal depiction.

The intensity of the carnation’s natural colour becomes particularly important. What can appear almost overwhelming in the abundance of Parisian flower markets is distilled into a more concentrated visual experience. Soft whites provide moments of calm, while fuchsia and yellow introduce bursts of energy, creating a balance between delicacy and expressive force.

The work also draws upon the carnation’s long cultural history. Cultivated for more than two thousand years and historically associated with the name “clover flower,” the carnation carries a richness of associations that extends beyond its visual appearance. Its distinctive fragrance, traditionally described through warm, spicy notes reminiscent of nutmeg and cinnamon, adds another sensory dimension to JCHADIMA’s encounter with the flower.
Influences of expressionism and pop art can be felt in the heightened colour relationships and graphic treatment of the forms, yet the work remains rooted in the artist’s continuing exploration of nature through abstraction. The carnation becomes both familiar and unfamiliar—a recognizable flower transformed into an environment of colour, texture, rhythm, and emotion.

Carnation reflects JCHADIMA’s fascination with discovering the extraordinary within everyday encounters. A flower encountered in the markets of Paris becomes the foundation for a more contemplative experience, where visual intensity is balanced by softness and where natural complexity is transformed into a language of feeling.

“From the abundance of the flower market, colour becomes rhythm, texture becomes movement. “