A Blank Canvas

In the beginning there is always anticipation, apprehension, curiosity, hope… My role as artist is to nurture, not solidity, nor parameters, but rather uncertainty - to give birth to an alchemy of possibility.

I’m seeking something elusive - to create a painting that resonates with our spirits and lifts our souls. Before paint touches canvas, the idea hovers between imagined desire and concrete form, shifting - a spectral shimmer. I am acutely aware of its fragility. 

As I anticipate making the first mark on canvas for the year, fears and questions cry out for my attention. But like a fiercely protective mother, I nurse the idea through it’s gestation and infancy, championing it on canvas until, in maturity, it can stand or fall on it’s own merits.

Just like mothering, this is a precious, mystical relationship. Love imbues all my decisions, even the tough ones, the editing and revising, that build strength and integrity into the painting. Truthfulness or insight is also vital. It guards the germ of the idea for the work and warns me of my own complacency. Then, as with caring for my children, there’s surrender. I willingly give up my time, energy and even freedom.

2016 promises to be a year of beginnings, with plenty of new paintings! I am excited to embark on making work to exhibit in Katoomba, Hobart, Balmain, Sorrento and Melbourne. I look forward to sharing my creative adventure with you, with all its surprises, challenges and hopefully success.