These large, ambitious paintings have altered the way he works. ….The problems, you could say, became his subject, and the implied message – far from being a reminder of mortality – seems to be about complexity, interdependence and burgeoning vitality. They are among other things, a demonstration in the 21st century that painting – even in this time honoured way, sur le motif, as the French say – remains capable of bursting into vigorous, ebullient life. (Martin Gayford)