Opening night:
Friday 4th October, 5pm – 7pm

I use sketchbook journals to record ideas, respond to questions from mentors and oftentimes as a place for warm-ups before a painting session – a repository for mark-making, drawing or collage.

When developing this series of paintings, I’ve referred to the journals to further explore experiences and observations of my daily life engaging with the natural world around my rural studios in Wainui, Auckland.

While there’s still evidence of my gestural hand, finer details and symbols have made their way from the journal pages into the visual vocabulary of some of the pieces, creating a contrast of figurative elements amongst the more abstract passages.

The paintings are like a visual diary documenting the essence of place – ‘tracks and traces’ not only of my time on the land but of the creative process itself through journaling. Whether it’s time spent by a pond, walking into an otherworldly forest, following trails sheep have carved, or being astonished by Autumn’s metamorphosis – all experiences offer a meaningful relationship and connection to all living things that I feel driven to share and celebrate in my work.

“There is something infinitely healing in the repeated refrains of nature—the assurance that dawn comes after night, and spring after the winter.” - Rachel Carson.