THE REEF SERIES
INSPIRED BY NINGALOO REEF, WA, THE GREAT BARRIER REEF, QLD,
AND JULIAN ROCKS, BYRON BAY, NSW Background:Our reef systems are now at the frontline of human intervention. The coral reefs of our eastern and western seaboards serve as metaphor for the fragility and delicacy of nature in our oceans, the preciousness we would like to preserve.
In previous series I have followed the flow of the water cycle in its various forms - as clouds, raindrops, streams and waves at the edge of the sea. This series, although it is different in image and form from earlier works, continues the theme of the cycle of water and its quality, to focus on the reef systems off-shore. Influences and inspirations:
My interest in water began as a child on a farm in South Australia, when we were made aware of the critical role of seasonal rainfall for the success of growing crops and raising stock.
More recently I have been inspired by Dr Masaru Emoto's books, such as "The Secret Life of Water", in which he traces the water cycle and provides photos of ice crystals responding to different words and energies. I have made trips to Ningaloo Reef in western Australia and the Great Barrier Reef in Queensland. Here at Byron Bay, Julian Rocks and a sunken wreck offshore provide a habitat for a large variety of reef inhabitants such as rays, turtles, nudibranches and sharks. I have also enjoyed researching old botanical studies of marine life. Processes:
I began with compiling a library of forms - sea anemones, sponges and corals - choosing them for their peculiar textures and patterns, and then reconfiguring these to construct collages. New relationships are formed in this process. Some of these playful compositions lay the foundations for paintings. What I love about painting is the way a painting can freeze a moment of activity into stillness - the stillness I enjoyed while painting, and the stillness which is then a quality of the painting.
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