There Are No Rules - Original

Louise Dear’s There Are No Rules (Pursuing Pleasure) is an important new statement in her celebrated series of works built around this fearless mantra. Only the third full-scale original ever created under this title, it carries a significant place within her portfolio.

The first There Are No Rules sold within hours several years ago, while the celebrated Egg sculpture at London’s Cumberland Hotel echoed the same spirit of spontaneity, a work that transformed at the last moment to embody artistic freedom. This latest version belongs to the Pursuing Pleasure collection and represents Dear at her most playful and assured.

Inspired by Shirley Bassey’s lyric “Love has no season, there are no rules. Those who stop dreaming are fools”, the composition radiates joy and liberation. Peonies, drawn petal by petal during a blazing French summer, bloom in lush pinks and greens. Layers of aged paints create translucent effects that can never be repeated, enriched with gold and silver leaf, matte and gloss contrasts, and sparkling crystals.

At the heart of the painting stands Louise’s muse, adorned with dazzling earrings inspired by her mother’s love of bold clip-ons and surrounded by creeping clematis, Japanese-inspired patterns, and a hidden daisy, her personal motif of light and renewal.

A vivid celebration of freedom, femininity, and creative power, There Are No Rules (Pursuing Pleasure) is an extraordinary original by one of Britain’s most distinctive contemporary artists.

• Medium: Original work on aluminium: Mixed media including gloss paint, gold leaf, glitter, Swarovski crystals and high gloss varnish.
• Image Size: 89.8 x 89.8 cm / 35.35" x 35.35"