A little bit of possum magic

4 Jan

A couple months ago a very good friend of mine from primary school asked if I could do a commission for a friend of hers. My friend Rose, who I knew even earlier than primary school but rather 'Possums Playgroup' in Taroona when we were only 2-3 years old! She asked if I could do an etching of three little possums in a bucket with some Australian native flowers. She gave me pretty much free reign to interpret the idea which suited me perfectly as I could already picture the composition in my mind. I knew that the sweet possums would be snuggled and perched on top of the bucket in a rather whimsical way. I also had a feeling the way I drew the possums would be quite light and soft lined- just an outline so that later on I could use water colours to give the possums texture and form. This concept felt quite sentimental and nostalgic, going all the way back to Possums Playgroup and just growing up around bushland, possums, native plants and the sea. I feel so grateful to have grown up around nature and to have had such a beautiful group of friend in primary school. We are all still good friends and our connection to our childhood is still such a strong bond.

This etching is not just a hand painted commission, but something very special and personal I made for a friend. I felt so happy that she chose me to commission this concept and bring it to life. Below, you can see the original drawing which was drawn by hand and then altered on the iPad. I then transferred it to a copper plate and processed it in acid. The hand painting was very laborious and took allot longer than expected but it truly was worth the battle! I think it took around 5 hours to paint. I had to keep layering the acrylic and watercolours just to give them a bit of depth and body! It is finished off with a hint of gloss varnish which just allow the colours to brighten and stay permanent.