Mark Francis presents Chroma 2026: sound-inspired art
Mark Francis exhibits his sound-driven abstract paintings in Chroma at Bernhard Knaus Fine Art from September 5 to November 21, 2026.
Stock photo for illustration only, not from the actual event
- Mark Francis unveils a new body of abstract paintings in the exhibition Chroma
- On display at Bernhard Knaus Fine Art from September 5 to November 21, 2026
- Artworks are shaped by sound frequencies, vibrations, and biological systems
- His works are also featured at the Republic of San Marino pavilion in the 2026 Venice Biennale
Bernhard Knaus Fine Art presents Chroma, a new collection of works by Northern Irish painter Mark Francis, featuring abstract creations that operate between what is visible and what can almost be heard. Scheduled to run from September 5 to November 21, 2026, the exhibition brings together canvases shaped by sound, frequency, and resonance, utilizing vibrating color fields and structured rhythms to transform the gallery space into a visual soundscape.
For Francis, color behaves less like a static medium and more like an acoustic phenomenon. Lines appear to oscillate, overlap, and reverberate across the canvas, generating compositions that evoke echoes without explicitly illustrating them. Pieces carrying titles such as Sound Echo, Metronomic Sound, and Veil offer subtle clues while allowing viewers to interpret the abstract forms freely.
Translating auditory concepts into visual art, known as cross-modal perception or sonic visualization, allows artists to evoke synesthetic experiences where viewers perceive musical qualities through paintings. This technique bridges rigorous mathematical structures with organic ambiguity.
Stock photo for illustration only, not from the actual event
The paintings frequently originate from structures reminiscent of microscopic imagery, crystalline formations, and cellular networks. Francis has long drawn inspiration from scientific imaging and biological models, extracting their geometries from their original contexts to use as foundational triggers before letting strict scientific order dissolve into unpredictable forms.
"The resulting works function less as fixed images than as experiential fields of color, rhythm, and resonance."
Mark Francis
This creative tension persists throughout Francis's working method. While his paintings are carefully conceived, they are often executed alla prima, permitting the image to evolve organically on the canvas as paint, gesture, and color interact in real time. Planning provides the structural framework, while spontaneity introduces creative disruption.
The resulting exhibition showcases experiential fields of color and resonance. In addition to the Frankfurt exhibition, his works are presented in Sea of Sound for the Republic of San Marino at the 2026 Venice Biennale, further expanding his exploration into the intersection of sight and sound.
Source: designboom
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