I am really excited to share with you my latest etching commission for Lady Gowrie in Tasmania. This is a very special commission as it was for a retirement gift for the CEO of Lady Gowrie. It was an honour to be able to make this etching as I also used to work at Lady Gowrie in South Hobart many years ago. I firstly started doing art classes for kids and then did an artist residency which involved me going to different schools and childcare centres doing art sessions with the children. I get so much joy from teaching kids because they are so creative and come up with such unique ideas! I would have loved to continue working with this centre but I felt that I was on a different path with my arts career.

I had quite a strong vision for this project and I knew that I wanted to create a composition that was minimalist and restrained in colour. It was imperative that it celebrated the architectural design of the Lady Gowrie Centre in South Hobart and that it really reflected the modern design. I also knew that it needed to incorporate plate tone and markings that resembled my style. When it came to mocking up the composition I felt that the appearance of wattle was very fitting. I remember walking to work through South Hobart and smelling wattle on those crisp mornings. It is quite a nostalgic smell for me and reminds me of Tasmania. I have balanced the composition and the wattle using minimal yellow in the flowers and the markings in the carpark. I didn't add any green to the leaves because I didn't want to overcomplicate the palette. I have hand-painted this etching extensively as I have darkened areas to create a further contrast.

I am really pleased with the the overall result of this commission and how the concept came to life. There was a very tight timeframe to get this etching finished and framed but I managed to finish it in time!

You can see here that the the wattle has been delicately hand painted with acrylic, watercolours and a hint of gold leaf pigment. I wanted to be really restrained here and not add too much colour. I also wanted to make sure it balanced really beautifully with the yellow markings in the carpark.

I was really thrilled with the final result! I feel like it was so different to anything that I have ever created and I think it has inspired me to try some new compositions with architecture in future. Watch this space!!

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Kate xx