The Yellow Rose

Acrylic, oil, charcoal, pastel, aerosol on canvas, by artist Terry Urban.

Size 152,5 x 122 x 3,8 cm (48 x 60 x 1.5 in)

The Yellow Rose presents a fractured portrait of intimacy, where three figures occupy the same space yet feel emotionally divided.

The central figure stands forward in quiet stillness, flanked by two women whose presence suggests both connection and concealment-one composed and watchful, the other partially obscured, whispering or withholding.

The yellow rose, traditionally a symbol of new beginnings and optimism, is held delicately at the edge of the composition, offering a sense of hope or renewal. Yet beneath its brightness, tension runs through the piece: gestural lines intersect and tangle, colors bleed and drip, and the figures overlap in a way that feels unresolved.

The work captures a moment suspended between promise and betrayal, where what is offered outwardly is not fully aligned with what lingers beneath the surface.