Artwork

Newfoundland residency

English Harbour Arts Centre, August 2008.

In August I was artist-in-residence at the English Harbour Arts Centre. I found this place incredibly inspiring, and it reminded me of how essential the natural environment is to my practice; to experience the rhythms of the elements, or the sense of being able to walk endlessly in the wilderness. Despite the weather I did still manage to draw outside, fastening a drawing board to my back so I could walk on the windy trails. I was particularly intrigued by the rock formations and it was interesting that although I often drew them from observation, the work ended up being quite abstract–perhaps because forms such as these are inherently abstract. I got lost in the repetition of the rock’s strata and wished I knew more about geology. I was also compelled by the way history is still so present in the village, for example the old fish store that was my studio still contained ropes, nets, wooden buckets… The combination of the extreme quiet, the slow pace, the rich culture, and the warmth of the people provided a perfect balance for a process-oriented work period.