I have always had a passion for art and pursued this interest whenever work and family would allow. In New Zealand I was for some years a specialist art teacher for schoolchildren, and as such attended professional and personal development courses in art subjects at a tertiary level. After several career changes I can finally focus my time here in Melbourne on developing my art practice. Currently I am a member of the Creativity Cluster group of artists exhibiting in and around Melbourne. I enter as many art shows and gallery exhibitions as I can, and recently won Best Still Life Award at the Warranwood Art Show, and in New Zealand I was a finalist in the Molly Morpeth-Canaday Art Award.
Inspiration comes from my surroundings, from nature, from my travels, from literature and from my background in horticulture. My paintings are usually grounded in a particular scene or still life set-up and are rendered not literally but imaginatively. My process involves layering synthetic polymer paint and using other mark-making mediums with a selection of collage elements to give complexity and depth to the surface of the work. This intuitive process gives me the freedom to express my subjects creatively through memory and the imagination. One element will inspire the next, culminating in a harmonious work that captures the spirit of the subject, be it a landscape, a concept or a vase of flowers.
Exhibitions:
2020:
October: 'Deconstruction Reconstruction', at the Dirty Dozen vitrines, Campbell Arcade, Melbourne
Moonee Valley Virtual Art show
April: 5x7 Art Prize, Joel Gallery, Altona
February 28-March 12: 'Landscapes Real and Imagined', Joel Gallery, Altona
January: 50 Squared, Brunswick St Gallery, Melbourne
2019:
December
November-December: 'Small', 45 Downstairs, Melbourne
October: 'On the Edge', Library at the Dock, Melbourne
February-March: Exhibition at the Renew Geelong Concept Space
Art Shows:
2019: Bayside Art Show, Warranwood Art Show, Flemington Art Show,Albert Park College Art Show, Portland Art Show, Linden Postcard Show,
2015: Camberwell Art Show
Awards: 2019 Best Still Life, Warranwood Art Show, Melbourne |