EAST Yorkshire artist David Humphries is lighting up the Blake Gallery in York with 30 impressionist works in mixed media.

Humphries has called his solo show Light Impressions, and he explains that title by saying: "Light is the electromagnetic radiation within the visible spectrum that falls on the retina of the eye and causes a visual sensation, so these paintings are my impressions of those experiences.

"I have tried to capture moments creating the richness of the world around us. The sun rises and sets so quickly, the colours change so rapidly, the waves break, the sea sparkles, and the clouds provide a continually changing panorama."

Humphries's method of painting reflects this speeding progress. "These paintings are but impressions created in mixed media with the immediacy of wet-in-wet techniques, poured acrylic inks, fast knife work in gesso and gouache to create that fleeting moment."

Humphries ran an electronics company until turning to art full time. His line of business involved "machine vision techniques" and the creative use of computer-generated images for industry, and this interest is reflected in the experimentation in his paintings and photographs.

"In the photographs I have used transient images of some of the paintings and macro techniques to bring part of the paintings to life," he says. "Light is essential to most forms of life and I hope you will feel the life flowing from these works."

Light Impressions runs until October 18 at the Blake Gallery, Blake Street, York. Opening hours are 10am to 5pm daily; closed Sundays and Tuesdays.

Updated: 12:49 Friday, October 10, 2003