Pale Flower, Bright Sky

This painting began with the shape of the King Protea - a little sculptural, a little stiff. Not showy exactly, but it holds itself with a kind of offbeat elegance that I found interesting to paint. Structured and slightly awkward - almost architectural, with its overlapping pale petals and stiff outer leaves. I liked that it wasn’t conventionally pretty, but still made a strong silhouette. I wasn’t trying to romanticise it; more just understand how all those pale, layered forms fit together.

I worked in acrylic, which let me keep the colours clean and the surface smooth. The pale petals were built up gradually in thin layers, while the background - a flat, saturated blue - was done in one go, to give it clarity and contrast. I liked the idea of the flower sitting against a simple block of sky, nothing else pulling focus.

Stylistically, it leans towards simplified realism, with some influence from Vuillard’s use of flat space and decorative composition. The painting isn’t trying to be naturalistic. There’s no shadow or atmosphere - just the object, balanced in space. I tried to keep the layout quiet, pared back, and a little graphic.

The addition of bare branches was a late decision, to break up the symmetry and give the whole thing a bit of tension. It’s a restrained piece, really—not dramatic, but steady. Which felt right for the subject.

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Sue Roberts trained at the Cambridge College of Art and Technology, where she received a Diploma in Visual Art before moving to London to work as an illustrator and graphic designer.

After relocating to Sydney with her husband and young family, Sue stepped away from professional practice for a time. When she returned to the studio, it was with a renewed focus and a commitment to further study. She completed diplomas in painting and printmaking at Hornsby TAFE, followed by a Bachelor of Fine Art Sculpture from the National Art School in Sydney.

Working fluidly between painting and sculpture, she has been widely exhibited and is held in private and institutional collections. Her accolades include the Kooindah Waters Acquisitive Sculpture Prize and the CCAT Travel Scholarship. She has been recognised across a range of juried exhibitions, including the UWS Sculpture Exhibition, Sculpture in the Vineyards and the Ewart Art Prize.

Through shifts in geography, disciplines and life stage, Sue has continued to follow a central thread: an enduring fascination with landscape - not just as subject, but as memory, emotion and elemental force.

Much of Sue’s practice is grounded in close observation of the natural world - echoing the contrasting topographies of both hemispheres: her early years in the rolling hills of northern Englands Lake District to the bold and often rugged forms of the Australian bush. Acrylic is her primary medium, though she moves fluidly between materials, allowing each piece to dictate its own process.