Acrylic on wood, ready to hang.

Signed on the front.

This artwork comes with an external frame

I completed a year-long self directed artist residency at a local flower farm in May 2024. Artist residencies run globally, hosted in a wide variety of venues, from museums to national parks. It is a chance for an artist to spend an extended and usually intense period in a specific place, making work as a visual response to that particular location. I loved my time at The Acres, hanging out with the dogs, bees and birds. There has been something new to draw or paint every week. When a new row of flowers appears I experience pure joy. My work has developed beyond any expectation and blossomed. I have always been attracted to places which seem to possess a spirit, a genius loci. This body of work seeks to explore, extend and share that feeling of this very special place.
I started this year-long project in May 2023 with drawing and photography. I drew in the gardens and flower fields for almost 2 months before I started to paint en plein air. My sketchbook drawings were developed into studio paintings. I filled 6 sketchbooks during my year and now have a huge visual resource.
During the hot and wet Queensland Summer Zinnias were the only flowers which kept growing. They were so bright amongst the lush green of the farm. Often the bright pinks and oranges didn't look real they were so vivid. This painting was developed from my many drawings made of the zinnias during the long summer months.
Framed in natural meranti float frame, hand sanded and waxed