Laura Stone’s Collection of Sunrises, Morning Dynamics, and Jingle Jangle translate fleeting atmospheric conditions into intricate abstract compositions.
Laura Stone creates abstract watercolor works using resist techniques to map light, atmosphere, and time through segmented color and rhythmic composition.
Working with watercolor and resist, Stone constructs layered surfaces composed of interlocking shapes, each functioning as a discrete unit of color and energy. These works are rooted in observation, particularly the transitional hours between night and day, but they move beyond representation into a system of visual mapping. Through segmentation, rhythm, and fluid linework, Stone captures the sensation of shifting light as a lived, perceptual experience.
Collection of Sunrises, Laura Stone, 2026, watercolor and resist, 22 x 30 in. / 55.88 x 76.2 cm.
In Collection of Sunrises, Stone organizes a wide spectrum of color into a dynamic network of interwoven forms. Warm yellows and oranges emerge alongside cooler blues and greens, suggesting the gradual unfolding of daylight across a horizon. The resist technique creates crisp boundaries between each segment, allowing the composition to function like a mosaic of temporal fragments. Rather than depicting a single moment, the painting accumulates multiple sunrises into one continuous field, emphasizing variation within repetition. The result is both expansive and intimate, inviting the viewer to navigate the surface as a record of shifting light conditions.
Morning Dynamics, Laura Stone, 2026, watercolor and resist, 22 x 30 in. / 55.88 x 76.2 cm.
Morning Dynamics intensifies the contrast between darkness and illumination, structuring the composition around the emergence of warmth from cooler tonal fields. Deep blues and purples give way to bursts of orange, red, and gold, evoking the kinetic energy of sunrise as it disrupts the night. The interlocking shapes appear to pulse across the surface, guided by curving lines that suggest movement and expansion. The watercolor resist technique enhances this sense of separation and cohesion simultaneously, as each form retains its individuality while contributing to the overall rhythm. The painting reads as a visual translation of atmospheric change, light not as a static condition, but as an active force.
Jingle Jangle, Laura Stone, 2026, watercolor and resist, 22 x 30 in. / 55.88 x 76.2 cm.
In Jingle Jangle, Stone shifts toward a more dispersed and rhythmic arrangement, where color fragments scatter across the surface in a lively, almost musical cadence. Cooler tones dominate, punctuated by warmer accents that flicker through the composition like distant signals. Created during early morning hours, the work reflects a liminal state between night and day, where perception is heightened and boundaries feel less fixed. The segmented structure, defined by resist lines, reinforces the idea of discrete moments or impressions accumulating over time. The title suggests sound and movement, aligning the visual rhythm with a sensory experience that extends beyond sight.
Across these three works, Laura Stone constructs a visual language that transforms natural phenomena into abstract systems of color and form. Her use of watercolor and resist allows for both precision and fluidity, enabling compositions that are simultaneously structured and organic. By fragmenting the experience of sunrise into interconnected units, Stone captures the complexity of perception itself, how light, time, and memory overlap and evolve. Together, these paintings present abstraction as a method of recording and reinterpreting the subtle dynamics of the natural world.