Seal Rocks Residency

Full of doubts that two weeks would be enough for an arts residency, to connect with and absorb the qualities of a place, I went not knowing what I would do, My hope was in the unknown and that my only limitations were what I knew.

Unfamiliar with Seal Rocks, I concentrated in the first week to get acquainted with its diverse closed and open forests, surrounding heathland and shorelines in quiet charcoal conversations on paper.

In the second week, the rainforest vines with their light and airy loops and twists up to the canopies compelled me to stay with them. My creative companions on this residency, David Collins and Jenny Pollak, encouraged me to go for the bare essentials in my drawing, which resonated with my instinct.

By the end of the residency I felt my visual language had become energised. I continued to simplify the vine line rhythms with clay wash and brush when I returned to Dangar Island.