Eberle creates evocative abstract paintings, sculptures and works on paper that are rooted in Abstract Expressionism, but find new ways to speak about the present with thick, rigorous brushwork, or imposing bronze sculptures. “Robert Motherwell said that the function of the artist is to express reality as felt. And that is where it starts for me.”

Helen Beard is Eberle’s champion for the Wick. She said: “I first met Wes when we were both exhibited at The House of St Barnabas at the same time, I was drawn to his paintings that evening at the Private View because of their emotive colour and the loose application of very impasto oils. His work really intrigued me because it is almost the antithesis of what I do. I loved the way the paintings were almost like Jazz recordings, to me, they felt full of spontaneity like the improvisation of John Coltrane or Thelonious Monk. His palette resonates with vibrant colour which he masterfully controls yet he gives the impression of each stroke being totally free to go where it likes, in a sort of harmonic form of rhythmic innovation. We became great friends and I realised Wes’s generosity was not just in his application of paint! He kindly let me visit his beautifully tasteful house in Hydra this summer to spend a week in residence and try out some new works. I am so excited to see where his next work goes as that element of improvisation means you never quite know where it will take you, but you know it will feel good!”

Eberle first came to visual arts by way of music, finding affinities between colour and tone, harmony in discord in working on canvas with oil. “I see my works as visual songs”, Eberle explains. “They are personal in that they often relate to a singular moment, a feeling, an experience. They tell a story. But then, as with music, once a work goes into the world, that story is interpreted and held in a personal way. When we derive meaning from any work of art, it is personal. We can be present in a particular moment and relive it differently. And to me these stories are central to the ideas of communication and perception that are woven throughout my work – not to tell one how to feel, but to invite one to feel.”

Now based between London and Hydra, where he also runs a residency, Eberle says his proudest achievement to date is to be “a working artist and tend to it every day with no one watching. Process is the lifelong conversation you have with your work, and one must keep that prayer honest.”