A minor - Variation 8 — Watercolor on Paper by Arnaud Quercy

About This Artwork

This small watercolor translates the A minor chord into visual form through chromesthetic mapping. The triad A, C, E becomes a set of colors derived from the circle of fifths, each note assigned a specific hue. Working on ten by fifteen centimeter paper, the piece converts three pitch-derived tones into a balanced arrangement of warm and cool passages. It belongs to the Synesthetic Explorations collection and continues an ongoing daily practice of translating piano voicings into visual compositions.

Soft yellow-orange tones fill much of the surface, carrying the root tone as a broad, warm ground. Violet and red-violet areas appear prominently across the upper and middle sections, giving the composition a muted, introspective character consistent with the key of A minor. A large rounded form occupies the upper portion, outlined in dark strokes that separate color zones with quiet precision. Smaller geometric shapes — a rectangle, a circle — punctuate the lower and middle areas, anchoring the secondary chord tones in distinct positions. A vertical black line runs through the composition, organizing the color fields the way a voicing organizes chord tones across registers. The watercolor medium allows smooth transitions between hues, and the overall palette stays in a high-key range with gentle warmth throughout.

As Variation 8 in the Research on Harmony series, this piece sits within a broader set of études exploring the same harmonic material through repeated translation. Each variation tests how a single chord can produce different visual outcomes depending on placement, proportion, and spatial arrangement. The compact format asks for close viewing to see how the three chord tones distribute across the surface. A faint lavender accent appears at the edge of the composition, adding a cool counterpoint to the dominant warmth.

The work bears the artist's signature at lower right and includes certificate of authenticity number 20250125-0039.