In our household, a painting by my father-in-law is our most treasured possession. He’s the person I make the bespoke colours with for all our interior design projects and he’s been working as an abstract artist since the 1960s. He has pieces in the permanent collection at The Whitney, MoMA – all these amazing places.
It was a surprise when he gave it to Nico and I at our wedding; I felt overwhelmed and extremely grateful. He’s been so generous in teaching me about the paint side of the business and producing colours for us, and this is an extension of that. It’s one of those works that completely transforms whatever space it’s in for the better. It’s energetic yet calming – the colours are of nature but they’ve got an edge to them. It does a lot and it means a lot to us.
What’s really appealing to me about his work, and that I pull into my work, are the stronger, bolder colours – the clashes you would see in nature, but when you see them in an interior you think ‘that’s quite brave’. This painting accentuates that feeling. It’s got unusual things sitting next to each other in a pleasing way.
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Because Donald is my husband’s father, I know he’s not precious with his own work. If I hadn’t seen what he’s like with his legacy (he does not take himself seriously), I would feel the pressure [in owning such a piece], but actually it’s something that you just enjoy. The thought of passing it down to my baby one day is glorious! I think you look a bit more inward when you have a baby. I need to make my own nest and treasure life a bit. rachelchudley.com
