2023 Finalist in the National Emerging Art Prize (NEAP)
The painting below, "Still Life with Flowers" was selected out of over 1,600 entries and was one of 67 works for the National Emerging Art Prize at the Michael Reid Art Bar in Pyrmont, Sydney in October 2023.
Luckily, I was able to finish this painting in time for the entry. I could only paint an hour a day due to the fact that I was completely disabled and awaiting a painful 12 months to have total hip replacement surgery for both hips. I felt very fragile and vulnerable, so I painted this without rushing, without forcing. I felt a tenuous, yet alive energy force around me that connected me to the work and I would down tools once the pain made me so tired that I could barely stand up. This usually took about an hour from the moment I started working on the painting. So in a slow and gentle fashion I painted this work that gradually took form over a longer period of time than usual and in much shorter sessions.
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| Still Life with Flowers, oil on canvas, 51cm x 51cm |
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| Still Life with Pear, oil on canvas, 30.5cm x 40.5cm |
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| Still Life with Japanese Cups, oil on canvas, 34cm x 34cm |
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| Candy Ice Proteas, oil on canvas, 61cm x 51cm |
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| Still Life with Boxes, oil on canvas, 61cm x 51cm |
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| Studio Interior, oil on canvas, 107cm x 82cm |
It's been an interesting year for painting. After a fun show at Michael Reid Northern Beaches in 2022, which I pushed through the painting due to chronic pain, things got worse and I only managed a few paintings after that in 2023. Both my hips will be replaced in September and November this year due to ongoing pain and drastic limitation of mobility. Looking back at these paintings, I am pleased that I pushed through the pain and sometimes having to go off a certain medication so that I could focus for a sustained period of time, to find the patience and calmness that is needed to come to an empty state of mind to produce these works.
