Featured artist: Wanda Comrie

Nasturtium in Blue on Checks, 16x12, oil on Ampersand Gessobord

Q: Although you've always had an appreciation for art, you didn't begin painting until after university, when you joined a once-a-week regional oil painting class. What inspired you to take that first step, and when did you realize painting was becoming more than just a hobby?

I have always been creative, and I studied Graphic Design at university, but I didn’t actually start painting until later in life. I really loved the feel of oils, the richness of the colours, and the texture and the workability really appealed to me. I also felt, to a certain degree, that I had found my people, and being part of a creative community fueled my enthusiasm with the paintbrush.

It wasn’t a straight path from there to becoming a full-time artist. Life and work took over for quite a few years. I worked full-time and supported my daughter through university, and painting was an enjoyable hobby.

Then menopause arrived; I left my stressful full-time job and found myself at a completely different stage of life. I picked up painting again and this time I had the space to really just explore and play. I became increasingly interested in developing my own style and painting the subjects that genuinely interested me, rather than simply learning how to paint.

I explored different mediums, developed my own way of working and, somewhere along the way, painting became my full-time job rather than something I fitted around everything else.

Grevilleas in Clay Canoe Vessel, 14x11, oil on Ampersand Gessobord

 

Q: You have an extensive indoor plant collection and a beautiful native garden, and many of the plants you paint are ones you've grown yourself. How does spending time nurturing them influence the way you observe and portray them in your artwork?

I love plants, and they’re a big part of my everyday environment. Growing them myself makes me notice the small things — the way a new leaf stretches out, how the colour changes as a flower ages, or just the beautiful, sometimes slightly odd shapes plants make as they grow.

I’m not necessarily looking for botanical perfection when I paint them. Often, it’s an unusual bend in a stem, an imperfect leaf or the way light catches a particular flower that interests me most. Having that connection with the plants I grow makes painting them feel much more personal and interesting to me. And it’s super satisfying to see a bloom that I’ve nurtured feature in a painting on someone else’s wall!

 

Stolen Banksias in Pip Woods Vessel, 16x12, oil on Ampersand Gessobord

 

Q: Flowers are beautiful but fleeting. How do photographs help you preserve those moments, and what artistic decisions do you make when translating them into a painting?

Photography is a really important part of my process, not just because flowers are so short-lived and the light changes so quickly, but because it’s usually where the composition of the painting happens. I’ll spend a lot of time arranging and rearranging flowers and vessels, changing backgrounds and watching how the light and shadows fall before I take a photograph.

Once I’ve captured something that excites me, most of the major compositional decisions have already been made. The photograph then allows me to preserve that particular moment of light, which might only exist for a very short time. When I translate it into paint, I’m still making decisions — simplifying, emphasising certain colours or shapes and deciding what needs attention and what doesn’t — but I generally stay quite true to the composition I created through the camera.

 

White Protea in Blue on Nancy Bird, 16x12, oil on Ampersand Gessobord

 

Q: Light and shadow seem to work together as equal subjects in your paintings. How do you decide when a shadow deserves as much attention as the plant itself?

I love shadows. Sometimes I think I’m just as interested in the shadow as I am in the object creating it. A strong shadow can completely change an otherwise simple still life — it adds depth, movement and another dimension to the composition.

I particularly love what happens when sunlight passes through glass, leaves or petals and creates unexpected shapes and colours on the wall or surface behind them. When I’m setting up a composition, I’m looking at those shapes just as carefully as I’m looking at the flowers themselves. For me, the light and shadow aren’t really supporting elements; they’re part of the subject.

 

Banksia in Pink on Margaret Preston, 16x12, oil on Ampersand Gessobord

 

Q: The colorful backgrounds and decorative objects in your paintings add another layer of personality to your botanicals. How do you choose those elements, and what role does color play in bringing a composition together?

I have way too many ceramics and glass vases! Most have been collected via Instagram, local markets and thrift shops, and many are by Australian artists and makers. I’m always looking at them as potential subjects, but when I’m putting a composition together, I’m less concerned with colour than I am with what the light is doing.

I’m considering the way light falls across an object, passes through glass or foliage, and how the accompanying shadow becomes part of the composition. Sometimes it’s the shadow rather than the object itself that makes the whole thing interesting.

Colour becomes much more interpretive once I start painting. The photograph gives me a compositional starting point, and then I’m quite happy to push, change or completely rethink colours as the painting develops. I don’t feel any need to faithfully reproduce what is in the photograph; the colour has to work for the painting.

 

Mirka on Pickle Green Chair, 16x12, oil on Ampersand Gessobord

 

Q: Whether you're painting a thoughtfully arranged still life or a light-filled interior, your work has a strong sense of place. What draws you to each subject, and what do they have in common for you as an artist?

Although still lifes and interiors can seem like quite different subjects, for me they’re connected by light, colour and a sense of atmosphere. I’m drawn to those moments when sunlight transforms an ordinary space or object into something much more interesting.

With a still life I have more control — I can arrange the flowers, move a vase or change the background until the composition feels right. Interiors are different because I’m responding more to what is already there. But in both cases, I’m interested in finding beauty in familiar, everyday things and capturing a particular moment of light.

 

Earth Darlings Lamps With Banksia, 16x12, oil on Ampersand Gessobord

 

Q: Every plant has its own personality, color, and structure. Is there one you find especially rewarding or challenging to paint?

Australian native blooms are all fascinating, so unique and different. I’m drawn to flowers and foliage with interesting shapes rather than traditionally perfect blooms. Native blooms can be quite sculptural and sometimes a little unruly, which makes them wonderful to compose.

The challenge with any flower is knowing how much information to include. It’s very easy to get caught up painting every petal and detail, but often the painting is stronger when I simplify and concentrate on the overall shape, colour and light. That balance between observation and knowing what to leave out is something I’m always working on.

 

Tetragona in Green on Checks, 16x12, oil on Ampersand Gessobord

 

Q: How did you discover Ampersand, and what do you love most about painting on our panels?

I’m essentially a very lazy person, and I was drawn to Ampersand panels because the Gessobord panels are beautifully prepared, consistently high quality, and ready to go; I can peel off their plastic skin and just start painting.

So, I’m saving time without compromising on quality. I don’t want to spend hours preparing surfaces when I could be painting, but I also don’t want convenience to come at the expense of the finished work. I love the smooth, consistent surface of Gessobord and the way it takes oil paint. They enable me to get straight to the best bit - getting the paint down.

 

 

Artist Bio:

Wanda Comrie is an Australian fine artist, maker, and passionate creative living in the Margaret River region. Wanda’s emerging creative practice encompasses observational, realistically rendered compositions.

Responding to shadow play in domestic scenes and locally found botanicals, she reflects on the beauty and complexity that everyday living can provide. Many years after studying graphic design, her work retains a solid graphic influence with a strong color palette. Recognized with numerous awards, Wanda's art is held in collections worldwide, and her practice continues to evolve. To see more of Wanda's work, visit her website, Instagram, and Facebook.

 

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Artist Partner: Wanda Comrie