feature friday XIV- Darren Waterston

The art of Darren Waterston has me at hello. His coupling of intricate detail with shapes and patterns echoing cosmos and the greater universe is perplexing. His style of markmaking really speaks to me as it is precisely what I am exploring in my own work right now. The combination of spontaneity and conscious composition is flawless in his work. I too hope to achieve this in my paintings. Not to mention Waterston's use of colour and light, which is simply a dream! He has exhibited widely and has been written about, so simply google him to read more about his work. One parting word though, wow.

feature friday XI - jose mertz

I am really into melty, flowy art at the moment, so the minute I saw Jose Mertz's work I knew he had to be this week's featured artist. His hybrid practice blends small scale colour pencil and pen works with large murals on street and gallery walls. I find his paintings quite psychedelic in nature, grooving and shifting into amorphous organic shapes. He has one show lined up for this year title Para Mi Gente at Primary Flight Gallery. Can't wait to see more of his work. Brilliant.

feature friday IX - stella im hultberg + giveaway winners

I decided to feature an artist who's work I have cited as inspiration since highschool. She is of course Stella Im Hultberg. Her earlier works from 2006-2007 are my favourites. I love her use of tea-stained paper and watercolours and minimal composition. So so lovely. I cannot wait to have a painting or print by her to add to my slowly growing collection of beautiful art.

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june sticker giveaway winners are:
Cat, Ann, Fashionturd

feature friday VIII - betsy walton

Betsy Walton's is the kind of art where you go "whoa, where do I start?" because you are overwhelmed by the amount of intricate detail and dense visual information. Yet this overlaying of imagery is so right. It is perplexing and I just can't get enough. Betsy's website houses the entire current collection, so be sure to take a look. For me, her work is reminiscent of one of my all time favourite painters, Frida Kahlo in the sense that they have an earthy, "naive" feel, and a certain element of magic which cannot be learned. In her own words Betsy explains that "her paintings and drawings explore the tension and balance between the mysterious nature of our existence and the objects and environments we find in everyday life." Simply beautiful!

red opus students' show

Due to the flurry of this past few weeks it is only now that the Red Opus Students' Show is finished, and I forgot to write about it. Either way it was lots of fun showing alongside some really great up and coming Adelaide artists like Jenny Allnut and Piyarat Mukura. The show was curated by a good friend of mine, the wonderful Anna Ficek, who I am not only glad to have had the pleasure of working with but also the pleasure of sharing a city with, as she is a globetrotter like none other!

All up I am really pleased with the experience and happy with the four pieces I put up. The two large woodpanels were (very ) last-minute, and I have to say they are possibly two of my most favourite pieces that I have created. Someone recently made a comment about Agnes (pictured just above) being a great design for a Tshirt. So that is something to think about. Perhaps I'll enter it on Design By Humans or Threadless? Anyone have an idea for me?

feature friday III - hope gangloff

It wasn't until a couple of days ago that I came across the work of the wonderful painter Hope Gangloff.
She refers to herself as an illustrator (not a painter), and most often draws inspiration from real life subjects, like her friends. Of all the works I saw on her website, my favourite is the second image above, that of the reclining woman. The combination of rich textures with the limited colour palette draws me right into Hope's work, as I search for the narrative which is present in all of her portraits. I knew her work would look absolutely amazing in person, but the final image is blowing me away. Gosh, I think I'm in love?