works on Paper
Drawing and sketching are the bones of an artist’s practice.
A shelf of sketch books in my studio harbours my archived drawings going back 45 years. They are a testament to my life dauntingly sitting in the corner of rooms, at dinner parties, amongst children, at festivals, in the bushland, day or night. All for the sake of the line and control of ‘the line’. I find even today that the charm of pen and wash practice draws me in.
Later I have found an empathy for the medium of Chinese sumi drawing, black ink, charcoal and working with mixed medium. Out of this I developed a series large works on paper, both landscapes and abstraction using handmade brushes, mixed media, and ink that I make from black walnuts. Handmade brushes and ink bring richness, innovation and authenticity to an artist’s mark making and the joy of experimentation with tools as well as natural mediums adds joy and zing to works.
