Artist Statement

 

 

 

Behind Natalie's Work

Natalie's inspiration comes from a deep desire to paint women to showcase their inner beauty and strength.

Her current collection is inspired by the Japanese legend of ‘The Thousand Paper Cranes’. This story states that one who creates a thousand origami cranes would be granted their deepest wish. This legend is most well-known by the WWII Story of Sadako Sasaki  who folded paper cranes to cope with her hospital stay after she was diagnosed with leukemia. Today she is a symbol of hope and peace in Japan.

After the past few years of turmoil, these paintings represent hope for a better future to come.

Her women often look contemplative and feature white flowing hair which represent the winds of change. The cranes symbolise the beginnings of something better and the promise of a deeper wish.

The halo's surrounding the women are based loosely on The Japanese Zen circle of enlightenment.

"My aim for these pieces is to evoke an emotional response through the simplistic and delicate portrait of a woman, juxtaposed against a highly textured background".

 

To create her work, Natalie's paintings have a base layer of vintage music sheet paper for her face and body, which gives varied colours and texture and is reminiscent of skin and veins.  She then applies a technique known as pointillism with acrylic paint to give texture and depth.