artist statement

“GOING HOME”

Ochre Sands and Shades of Blue

Lauren Marie Wilson

Long, is the path ahead.

And though my body tires,

and I have far to go,

I know I’m going home. –Asgeir Trausti, (2013).

My current body of work “GOING HOME” is a personal representation of my relationship between my two homes, Alice Springs and Darwin. My works are characterised within the field of abstract aerial landscape art, as I take inspiration from forms and colour’s from these geographical locations and reinterpret them into my works.

Ochre sands represents my old home of Alice Springs; red dirt lands and burnt ochre sands mixed with the warm beige of dried river beds. Raw and fragile configurations and layered textures overlap to embody the hostile and unforgiving landscape that is the outback. Shades of Blue represents my new home of Darwin, rich turquoise and opal blue hues cascading over each other and the surrounding beige of the sand bars that appear at low tide. Iridescent lacy patterns capture the beauty of the top end.

Throughout this body of work I have intended to represent the fleeting feeling of arriving home. As I travel to and from both Alice Springs and Darwin I am in a constant state of “going home” and have been able to visually represent this ephemeral feeling through my abstract aerial landscapes representational of Alice Springs and Darwin. Nostalgia also plays a heavy role in communicating this sentiment. I rely on viewer’s personal memory and feelings, to form a relationship either similar to mine or completely different. Viewers can appreciate the work formally or they can search for their own meaning through their interpretation. Viewer interpretation is an important element that is fundamental with abstract art. I hope viewers can feel comfortable in seeking their own interpretation.

Lisa Wolfgramm, 2009 describes “pouring paint at a distance from a horizontal canvas constitutes, if not a totally random act, at least a unique and un-repeatable event.” My process and practice are similar and take inspiration from Wolfgramm’s as I intend to create un-repeatable and unique occurrences in each work.

The materials used throughout this series have been acrylic paint diluted with water on board. There is a simplistic beauty between water and paint when combined, the gooeyness melts away and the diluted paint can roll over the board effortlessly, pooling and drying where it wishes. My process fits somewhere between action painting and abstract aerial painting as I take elements from both styles: the spontaneity and freeness from action painting; and the visual references of landscapes through memory; and personal observation from aerial painting. I combine these two styles to create colour filled canvases through pouring which are reminiscent of aerial images and that pay homage to the Australian landscape and the importance of home.

Using these materials in this way is important to the final pieces because of the interactions between the water and the paint. The water reacts and enhances the paint in a way that when dried creates so much texture and organic arrangements that are un-repeatable. The water also makes the paint flow so beautifully and permits the colour’s to interact and dance with each other slowly before settling and arranging themselves to dry on the board. My touch is retracted so that the paint is in control. I can not replicate or repeat the event that has taken place on the board, its all about the moment and is left to chance. Like the Australian landscapes there’s so much uniqueness and detail hidden within my paintings. The ocean waves moving in and out at low tide, creating patterns and movements is reflected in Shades of Blue. The rough winds that move the reddened and burnt sands across desolated land are reflected in the Ochre Sands. Both capturing movement in stillness.

Artists such as Jackson Pollock will always be a motivation for me and my practice as his action painting process is the foundation on which mine has been able to grow. Contemporary Australian artists such as Lara Merrett, with her enormous colour saturated canvases that capture colour in everyday life have motivated me to be bold with colour choices and canvas size. Lisa Wolfgramm with her pouring series, devoted to experimentation has also been an influential artist to the development of my practice as she explores the process and the act of pouring itself and reminds me to treat the canvas as a “field to be activated through material manipulation” (L.Wolfgramm, 2009).

References

Trausti, A. (2013) ‘Going home’, In the Silence,

Wolfgramm, L. (2009) ‘Poured’ Tuner galleries viewed 21^st October 2014,

<http://www.turnergalleries.com.au/exhibitions/13_wolfgramm.php#.VEiRjtxRf1o>

pack up

sunday was the last day of the exhibition, so it was time to take everything down and restore the gallery. its also that time of year when packing up the studio begins. my least favourite thing to do, apart from writing assignments that is. its always so sad to pull everyone down and see the bare, somewhat white walls of the studio space.

even harder this year as its the last time for me. it will feel so bizarre not spending my days tucked away in my area, painting, researching, reading, writing or face booking… heh or talking with the others about my works, or ideas or life in general. i know i have said this before, but this year as just been the best year by far i have had in darwin, even with the ups and downs I’ve had. i know that the people i have meet here in darwin, and more importantly i people i have meet here at uni have shaped me into the person and artist that i am .. and developing into. i hope that next year i can continue to paint and further my current aerial abstract landscape painting practice. i know it will be a challenge with my last year at uni next year, but i hope i can further develop and refine my work and maybe even have a solo show as DVAA or something… joining DVAA is at the top of the to do list for next year.

post exhibition

friday nights exhibition was unbelievable! the turn out was amazing the comments from the viewers about the works and the night itself were great. the atmosphere of the gallery was electric. the lighting was spot on and everyones work, while very different in medium and content meshed well together. i felt so proud and privileged to showcase what i believe is my very best work, this far with such amazingly talented friends.

– Nadine setting up the food- – Serge and friend enjoying my work –

– Sarah, Amy and Tamara giving speeches – – everyone enjoying the food and drinks –

– Carly and I – – inside the gallery –

– inside the gallery – – my series ‘GOING HOME’ –

opening night eve!

todays the day before opening nigh !! :0 where has the time time gone!! I’m not ready to finish but alas all good things must come to an end .. everyones work is installed, lighting has been fixed, and re fixed, labels have been typed, re typed, printed, laminated and finally stuck not the wall! and the gallery actually looks like a real gallery ! i am so proud of everyone and all the work that has been created in the last 12 weeks. everyone has been so supportive and i can honestly say i don’t think i would have produced they work i have without everyones input, constructive criticism,and ears for me to vent to or nut out ideas. this year has been the best by far not only for the work i have produced but also the relationships i have made along the way.

photos from my iPhone, joel has kindly offered to take professional photos of everyone and their work tomorrow.

sneak peak of the gallery before its opened tomorrow night!

SET UP

nadine and i appointed ourselves as the “shoppers” and “food preparers” for the exhibition opening. we went to COLES and WOOLIES shopping around for the best deals for the food and drinks as we didn’t really have much of a budget.

peter gave us the great idea of putting up a little sign and donation bowl in the gallery, so that the viewers could put a gold coin or two in to help with the cost of the food and drinks. all up we spent $282.00 of food and drinks, the viewers donated $72.00 so that left each of us to chuck in $30.00 to cover all the costs.

installation day !

its Monday of week 12 already, and its time to install ! I’m excited to hang my work as this will be the first time i really get to see my works hung together. a few weeks ago we all decided on the floor plan layout for everyones work. i was very happy with the plan, as i got the back wall , which is the one i wanted after last semester having the “shitty” first wall next to the entrance. i digress, the back wall (5 meters ) was perfect for my series GOING HOME. i hung both the paintings (each 1200 x 900mm) 1 meter from the right wall and then again 1 meter from the left wall, leaving about 28cm in-between both the paintings. the centre of both the paintings is 1.55 meters from the ground. i then placed the title which is 40 cm long made from wooden letters that i painted nan geise white 22 cms above the 2 paintings .

installing the works.

close of “Ochre Sands” and “Shades of Blue” part of the series GOING HOME.

close up of the series title “GOING HOME” – wooden letters painted Nan geise white (same as the walls)

ARTICLE IN THE NT NEWS !

tamara being the most awesome person ever and having contacts at the NT News was able to get a short article written about my work and also a plug for the exhibition. this is my first ever published article about my work and i was extremely excited that i was given the opportunity.

“the markedly different landscapes of Alice Springs and Darwin provide the necessary inspiration to Lauren Wilson, who is preparing to exhibit her body of work. The Charles Darwin University visual arts/teaching student will resent Going Home as part part of tomorrows RADAR: 3rd Year Emerging Visual Artist exhibition opening. “i was inspired by aerial landscape art and its visual representation of that feeling of going home”, she said. “I am originally from Alice, so going to an from both i feel I’m always going home. Ochre sands and Shades of blue are the two paintings representative of her personal experience, but they are open to other accounts. “my work is abstract so the viewer and interpret the paintings how ever they want”, she said. “with Shades of Blue, i hope people can see that and find they can be nostalgic. the exhibition will be open from 10am -3pm from wednesday – sunday past the opening.

i think the article was really well written and gives a quick insight into what the work is about to me but also mentions that the work is also about viewer interpretation. overall i wouldn’t change a thing…. apart from the terribly cheesy smile i have on my face, but thats not important. all thats important is the the work.

aerial landscape artists

GEORGIA O’KEFFE:

American artist Georgia Totto O’Keeffe (1887-1986) played a leading role during the twenties, challenging existing concepts by producing artworks that were considered progressive, flamboyant and ultra modern in style: Few women artists have been as influential as O Keefe. During the sixties and seventies O Keefe began producing ‘cloudscapes’ – One of her most famous art works being a huge oil painting titled “Sky Above Clouds IV” currently exhibited at the Art Institute of Chicago. While this may not depict land it does depict a perspective from directly above. O Keefe also produced true aerial landscape art, and example being ‘It Was Blue and Green’ – Produced in 1960. In this painting the green earth can be seen through a light layering of clouds

SUSAN CRILE:

is American painter and printmaker. She has had over 50 solo exhibitions. her aerial landscapes works were described by author Margret Dreikausen ‘as abstract paintings, more pattern than image, broken up by line and color’

YVONNE JACQUETTEAN:

is an American painter and printmaker known in particular for her depictions of aerial landscapes, especially her low-altitude and oblique aerial views of cities or towns, often painted using a distinctive, pointillistic technique. She is currently represented by DC Moore Gallery, New York.

modernist abstraction and the aerial landscape

for a while now i have been concerned with fitting my work and process into a theme or movement and since the begging of starting uni i always thought that i fitted into the abstract expressionist movement, being that my previous work non- representational or non objective. the work especially early on in this semester was primarily about colour and my process, there is/was no meaning behind my work, it was purely experimentation of colour, paint and process. as my process has developed but i now believe my work fits into the field of aerial landscape art.

what is aerial landscape art ? an article on http://www.artsmypassion.com/articles.asp?ID=168 describes it best as “neither non-representational or non-object art that represents objects from a different perspective.” the article also talks about a natural ‘kinship’ between aerial landscape painting and abstract painting — familiar objects are sometimes difficult to recognise when viewed aerially and there is no “up” or “down” orientation to the painting.

artist such as jackson pollock, an artist that is a permanent inspiration to me and my work often have a sort of “all over” distribution of interest that defines any attempt to decide on a correct or right orientation for the work. my work fits this mould exactly! there is no right or wrong focal point. they work can be hung horizontally like a traditional landscape painting or vertically . this is the predicament i am facing now .. which way to hang the work ?

horizontally or traditional landscape view (above) or vertical traditional portrait view (below)

i think i will have to play around when installing on monday to see which way suits the two works as a whole.

xLMW

final works

after my productive weekend spent in the studio creating both a smaller piece in blue and orange (below)

it was time to bite the bullet and start the finals . I’m always so nervous when starting the final pieces, i put so much pressure on myself to make it perfect. i don’t want to stuff up or waste materials, this mentality is something i have been dealing with for a long time, pretty much the whole tie i have been at uni i have felt this way. starting these last two pieces i was feeling a mixture of excitement and anxiety. i just cleared my mind, the best i can and focus on the paint and what is in front of me. the rest sort of comes naturally now starting with the beige colour adding in white here and there, tilting the canvas occasionally at this stage to get as much coverage as possible with the beige, which i call the background colour. then pouring on the main colour either turquoise blue or burnt orange in two or three different shades in different sections of the canvas. letting the paint move freely melting into the white and beige areas.

SIDES:

during the peer review i talked about what colour would be best to use for the sides, normally black or white is used . I, along with most of the group agreed that black would be too distracting, so that only left white really.. until Carly suggested i use the same colour beige i used in the painting … such a great idea ! don’t know why i didn’t think off it but it makes sense to use the predominate colour that unites the two paintings together. using the beige continues to unite the paintings together but also gives them a finished look.

before

after

going home

“>

asgeir’s “going home” from the album in the silence is a song that i feel really resinates with me and my feeling towards home. its because of my feeling towards home that this series or body of work has evolved into representing

i also chose the title for the series to be GOING HOME as i felt it best represented both the works. when I’m in darwin I’m going home to alice but when I’m there its not home , and when I’m in alice I’m going home to darwin but when I’m there its not home either. both are my home but at the same time neither are my home. thats why i think the title is fitting of both places.

the way that i interoperate the song and the lyrics (which i have posted below) is returning home, returning to loved ones that help lighten your load of burdens and worries. its about asking for help not being ashamed to need or ask for it.

one of the last line “Long, is the path ahead.And though my body tires,and I have far to go,I know I’m going home.Home, I’m making my way home”. i feel best represents me and the path i am currently on. i have to return home, i have to ask for help to regain strength mentally to be able to continue my journey in darwin.

GOING HOME
Home, I’m making my way home.
My mind’s already there.
Yes, my mind is

Light, you’re with me in the dark.
Light my way at night.
Let your light shine

Now, this burden weighs me down.
The heaviest of weights
knocks me to the ground,
right down to the

Dew that sparkles on the ground.
Blue mountains loom above.
Blue mountains loom

And I walk alone; one wish
won’t be forgotten,
never forget that

Long, is the path ahead.
And though my body tires,
and I have far to go,
I know I’m going home.
Know I’m going home.
Know I’m going home.
Know I’m going home.
Know I’m going home.

Home, I’m making my way home.
My mind’s already there.
Yes, my mind is

Light, you’re with me in the dark.
Light my way at night.
Let your light shine

Now, this burden weighs me down.
The heaviest of weights
knocks me to the ground.

This burden weighs me down.
Burden weighs me down.
Burden weighs me down.
Burden weighs me down

reference material

google earth images : the great barrier reef

aerial images: alice and darwin

why am i so fascinated with the aerial view ? this is a hard question to answer. i have been privileged enough to spend a lot of time travelling by plane to and from my home in alice springs a child on family holidays, i think it is from here that my love for aerial images and aerial views of the landscape have developed. i love getting a window seat on the plane and watching the landscape change, in colour, texture and depth. taking off and landing are my favourite times , its an amazing experience witnessing the land move before you, which is technically impossible and your the one moving in the plane but i think it feels the earth is moving for you.

last semester aerial landscapes of both alice springs and darwin were influences for my work. personally i think last semester i was try too hard. trying too hard to make the works look like a particular place and i felt there was too much pressure, pressure from myself mainly to be able to represent a landscape. thats why the works seamed unresolved

i think thats why at the beginning of this semester i moved away from representation work, just focusing on colour and paint and letting the paint be fully in control. last semester i tried to do this but i wasn’t letting myself be free enough. the works were neither free or controlled. there where a bit of both and thats why they didn’t work.

i spent a lot of time playing with colour and different pouring techniques, developing my technique and style. below is an sort of image timeline, capturing the development of my process throughout the semester.