Heart Waves

Tina Bluefield

84” x 66”

Oil and oil bar on canvas

Heart Waves is a large-scale oil and oil bar painting that translates rhythm, emotion, and optical movement into a luminous field of undulating vertical lines. Rendered in a radiant spectrum of reds, the surface appears to shift and pulse as the viewer moves before it. Small, precisely placed points of contrasting color punctuate each wave, activating the canvas with a quiet vibration.

Bluefield’s technique balances disciplined structure with atmospheric nuance. Her use of oil bar creates a tactile surface that catches and refracts light from every angle. The repeated wave motif calls to mind the inherent rhythms of breath, heartbeat, and pulse. This internal cadence gently anchors the composition.

Heart Waves aligns Bluefield with artists who explored perception, repetition, and optical rhythm. The work recalls the kinetic linework of Bridget Riley and the chromatic subtlety of Agnes Martin, yet maintains a distinctly contemporary sensibility rooted in physical texture and tonal depth.

Within this piece, line becomes an instrument that measures emotional temperature as much as physical space. Bluefield treats rhythm not as a pattern but as a living, breathing presence that expands and contracts with the viewer’s gaze.

Heart Waves merges color, rhythm, and atmosphere into a single harmonic surface, resonating like the echo of a pulse.