Blog: A Connection to the Land

My apologies for the lack of blog posts. Sometimes privately commissioned projects just gets in the way. Usually in the best way :)

Recently I have been working on a different project and with different media, painting New Zealand native birds on New Zealand ancient native woos - Matai and Totara.

These works are painted on ancient Mātai and Tōtara timber sourced from Northland riverbeds. Lost from barges over a century ago and preserved in silt, this timber dates back up to 500 years. I have purposefully left the wood's outer roughness and natural holes intact to honour its journey, creating "living" sculptures. Weighted and reinforced with steel, they require no hanging and stand proudly on any ledge or mantelpiece.

In the above image you see Ray Everett sanding the timber before final prep coat goes on.

And here is an example of the fully prepared wood ready for me to paint.

In the meanwhile, I've completed my pencil drawing and am ready to transfer the image to the timber.

I can't show you the finished are yet, however I can show you a photo of a partially completed painting of rutting Stags, also painted on wood.

I'd love to hear what you think about this type of art. Please feel free to reach out to my via my Facebook Page.

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