Quiet Escape

Deep in the Trees Exhibition

This exhibition is an invitation: you’re invited to notice, be beckoned close. First, observing the dialled-up volumes of colour and tone, then absorbing layers of paint and brushstrokes. It reminds you of a bush walk, it reminds you of how it feels to be stopped still by nature and its beauty.

Clair Bremner paints intuitively, expressively. Her interpretations of place elicit joy in the viewer, and she is known for creating layered, colourful paintings that transport us. She paints a landscape arising from her memories and impressions of the bush, yet it’s accessible for the collective. We know a place just like this; her paintings take us there through memory and imagination.

Moving to Warburton around ten years ago clarified Clair’s resolve to paint. Although she grew up in the Yarra Valley area, it was this being in this place – immersed in bush sounds and smells, alongside the animals that inhabit it – that rejuvenated her painting practice. Her artistic career has bloomed since then, and she is well known for her affinity with colour, texture, and the ability to translate her love of nature with effervescent delight.

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I am a professional artist based in the Yarra Valley area of Melbourne. Artist StatementMy goal is to create artworks that are visually beautiful, calming and organic. My paintings are highly decorative; however, I feel they also serve as a reflection of the beauty and complexity that nature provides. I like to create art for real people to go into real homes that are a visual feast for the eyes and will be enjoyed for generations. I am primarily inspired by the natural tangle of vegetation that can be found everywhere near my home in the Yarra Valley.

My paintings are a direct reflection of my surroundings and an imaginary world – a secret garden in my mind. A whimsical place that I can go to escape and be lost within. I begin with a combination of splashes, bleeds and runs in different colours that I then combine with finer foliage details. I use the repetition of brush strokes and natural motifs to create a consistent rhythm within the painting, which helps to create order in the chaos of colour. The contrast between the broad strokes and fine details creates texture and depth in the pieces.

My colour palate is governed by my mood and the general feeling I want to create within each painting. I generally work with analogous colours combinations because I feel they best reflect the natural harmony of nature, the subtle warm or cool changes of the seasons and foliage provide endless inspiration. However, I am not afraid of colour and often experiment with combinations not traditionally associated with nature and landscapes.