artist statement - This body of works is as much an exploration of our colonial culture as it is my own identity. It is a tale of resilience, of the pride and prejudices against social & political injustices of early Australia and the tries & tribulations of rural settlement.
Meet my cousins. They are painted in Yangerdin country, in the south west of West Australia where my pioneering story begins. They are wearing dresses made from the banksia ashbyi, a metaphoric fabric representing the spirit and resilience, the mettle through the ages, of the women in our family. The flower spikes and fruiting cones have born, in feast and famine drought and downpour, buds of great beauty and artistry in their capacity as women to overcome. Botanical & animal forms are a prominent and integral part of my artwork. They are often multi dimensional as they profile the living physical elements of the Australian landscape whilst metaphoring the spiritual & intellectual context. Our psychological responses to our environment is a constant muse and thread to my pieces.
1500 x 1150 oil on linen
1500 x 1500 oil on canvas
1500 x 1150 oil on linen
1115 x 1500 oil on linen