Moonlight Man 4.1.09 (2009) is one of Hoyland’s smaller works. His titles, which since the 1960s he has also named with the date of the completion of the work, suggest the essence of the painting. Starting with black, he favoured it for its resonance and its deep contrast to the bright colours he applied after. The black gives the colour more vitality. In this work an orb of yellow sits on the surface next to thick black paint squeezed straight from the tube. Always in search for difference and contrast, the sections of layered, swirling bright colours draw the eye to the surface of the picture plane, creating exciting spatial interplays for the viewer.