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Glorious Descent

Glorious Descent
Acrylic on canvas 60 x 40cm

Wednesday, May 30, 2012


Works on Paper – a parallel journey to my painting and sculpture practice.

Whilst travelling in 2011 I maintained an artistic practice by working on a pocket pad of paper, often just with pencil or pen but at other times with gouache. The immediacy of the marks and colours gathered in these pads were fresh and raw and continue to speak truthfully of my experience of time and place. During my residency at Bundanon I returned to these sketch pads so as to start work on a larger collection that would broaden my interdisciplinary practice.

Life of the Fire revisits my participation in Dias De Los Muertos, one of the most sacred and colourful festivals in the world. The colours and imagery are derived from the public and private spaces in the Mexican towns where Day of The Dead is celebrated and pertains to the devotional practices and energy that is abundant at this time. The rainbow grid format refers to the paper flags that adorn the streets and welcome the communion of the living and the dead. Featuring a combination of printmaking, drawing and ink painting it is a piece of work that could be extended in a number of directions. This possibility excites me and is an expression of the rejuvenation that Mexico offered me.

Sunday, May 13, 2012

To make a promise

Hidden deep in the bush behind the pristine pasture of Bundanon is the Amphitheatre. It is a natural rock formation that towers into the sky and is framed by the thin trunks of spotted gums. At the forefront is a shady dell that welcomes picnics, conversation and music. This is where Arthur Boyd would often relax with friends or play music with the local people. A painting of this place is currently in Arthur’s studio at Bundanon and it made a lasting impression on me whilst I was an artist in residence at the Bundanon property. Pledge at the Amphitheatre is created after this work, as my response to the landscape but also to the community and creativity that is inspires.Just as Arthur painted with his wife Yvonne, I have taken loved ones to this special place. The robust brush marks and intensity of colour suggest the powerful beauty of the environment; whilst the immediacy of the pastel marks are connotative of the energy of people enlivening place. If you creep through the brush at the base of the rock you will find a little passage way that leads up onto a stage like platform. Once standing on top, looking out at the surrounding bush there is an overwhelming vibration in the air, everything and nothing exists between you and the natural world, no longer looking up at the towering surrounds you are part of the place. It was in this moment that I was compelled to make a pledge....