In Salt on the Lips, two red bicycles stand suspended between shoreline and horizon. No figures are present, yet the composition implies arrival — or departure.
 
The saturated red frames cut sharply against the expansive blues of sea and sky, creating a tension between stillness and movement. The bicycles function as extensions of the body: tools of navigation, markers of autonomy.
 
Brushwork is direct, almost urgent. Shadows pool beneath the wheels in dense ultramarine, anchoring the scene against the brightness of sand and surf. Light does not dissolve form; it sharpens it.
 
The absence of human figures intensifies the sensory field. Wind, salt, heat — these elements are suggested rather than described. The title invokes touch and taste, locating the memory within the body.
 
Rather than romanticizing the seaside, the painting frames it as threshold — a space where motion pauses before continuing.
 
Freedom here is temporary.
And therefore precise.
 
Original artwork by Gala Bond
27 ½ x 27 ½ in | 70 x 70 cm
Oil, linen canvas