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In Liquid Crystal Painting, Catlin recounts the origins of her experiments — from seeking to replicate the nacreous glow of mother-of-pearl shells on Cape shores, to collaborating with scientists and technologists (notably a Dr Cyril Hilsum) to adapt liquid crystal for fine art.
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Liquid Crystal Painting by Gail Catlin (c. 1999, Stonehaven Publications) presents a groundbreaking exploration of art and science, introducing readers to Catlin’s pioneering work — the world’s first serious artistic use of liquid crystal as a painting medium. This book documents Catlin’s decades-long obsession with capturing light, colour, and the subtle shifts of nature through a medium far more dynamic than traditional paint. Through essays, illustrations and commentary, the volume explains how liquid crystal reacts to light and temperature, producing luminous, shifting surfaces that give her paintings a living, kaleidoscopic quality.
In Liquid Crystal Painting, Catlin recounts the origins of her experiments — from seeking to replicate the nacreous glow of mother-of-pearl shells on Cape shores, to collaborating with scientists and technologists (notably a Dr Cyril Hilsum) to adapt liquid crystal for fine art. The book delves into the technical and artistic challenges she faced: imperfect early results, trial-and-error, and painstaking refinement over many years — until she discovered how to lay the crystal on surfaces in precise ways so it would refract light like a prism.
More than a technical treatise, the book is a statement of artistic vision. Catlin’s liquid-crystal works aim to capture the shimmering light, expansive skies, and atmospheric moods of the African landscape — in a way no oil or acrylic painting could. The idea is that as light and temperature change, the painting itself subtly transforms, suggesting movement, depth, and the ephemeral rhythms of nature. Liquid Crystal Painting thus becomes a manifesto for a new kind of art: alive, responsive, and in constant flux.
For collectors, art lovers, and those interested in experimental media or South African contemporary art, this 1999 edition is a rare and significant work. Liquid Crystal Painting stands as both a milestone in the history of art technique and a captivating showcase of Catlin’s visionary creativity — a unique and collectible addition to any second-hand art book collection.
