Seas to Red Centre 19plusOne

Painting Explorations From the Sea to the Red Centre amongst Trees and Creatures. Turtles, Fish, Crabs, Forests, Plains, Mountains, skeletons and saints, tigers and snake.

And the Seas Rose Up   Acrylic on Canvas 1800 x 1200 mm (70.2” x 47.9”)

The sea arouses lots of memories, teases, tempts with mysteries and secrets. I quickly learnt to respect it, not fear it.

This painting gained the overlay sometime after renowned Dale Marsh reviewed my original exhibition when the painting was simply titled Seas: “Elizabeth Woodfield is a painter of the mind rather than a painter of light, and the exhibition is powered by a feel for the haptic approach to art rather than a visual encounter with her subjects … The large canvas “Seas” depicts heavy waves in a patch of ocean. Painted with energetic brush strokes and vibrant colours, this painting evokes the raw, crude power of the sea, and the artist’s excitement with her subject.”

Mountain Idyll

Acrylic on Canvas *Framed  0805 x 0505 mm  :  Mountains float as if in a sea below Mary Cairncross Scenic Reserve, an ecological wonder, as a kite dances in updraughts above a farm tucked below the road with my island in the far-far distance.

Mad-dogs Glittered in a Sacred Place

Acrylic on Canvas *Framed  0805 x 0505 mm  :  In the mid-day sun amongst the scrub I looked up and mad-dogs glittered intruding a sacred place.

Earth Air Fire Water – Kata-Tjutu

Acrylic on Canvas *Framed  0800 x 0500 mm  :  Whilst artist-in-residence at Yulara, I sketched from lookouts in the evening or bussing about amidst shifting colours of The Red Centre and worked on paintings overnight or during the day – some brought home to finish. The ground and extraordinary “rocks” glowed surreally while most sunsets were stunning. My compass went crazy, the needle spinning to eventually settle with the poles reversed – the sand’s iron content is so high. I wondered if that phenomenon contributed to expeditions lost. In this ancient savage landscape with brittle-dry air the vegetation and creatures have developed extraordinary survival tactics, the Desert Oaks don’t send out laterals until permanent water is tapped, sometimes taking many, many decades. The whole spectrum of The Red Centre fascinated me where every element makes its mark.

Kakadu Dreaming (Yellow Water)

Acrylic on Canvas *Framed  0800 x 0500 mm  :  Landscapes tease me with their mysteriousness as their colours, shapes and patterns recede and grow in changing light and physical conditions by the Yellow Water like ancient myths re-birthing.

Landscape – His

Acrylic and String on Canvas 0760 x 0920 mm (30” x 36”)  :  Travelling through typical South-Eastern Queensland ranges, this old stone house perched above me evoked visions from long-ago, and I wondered what it must have been like, breaking in the land, and for a fresh bride whisked far from her citified family. Landscape – His  won 1^st Prize at The Kenneth MacQueen Memorial Art Prize at Heritage Toowoomba Royal Show.

Perennial Dilemma – All is One

Acrylic on Canvas 0550 x 0760 mm (thick Stretcher)  : Always conflict has existed, even before the apple and serpent. In an Age where Conflict rises ugly, does Faith falter in disillusionment or re-emerge strong ribboned in symbols significant?… Faith in Age of Conflict: Always conflict existed, even before the Apple and Serpent, with belief (faith) founded on the bedrock of concern for all beings; and symbolism interlacing societies. So: Everything is weighed, measured, recorded; Blue is for Infinity, Mothers; Madonna and Child, Mother-Daughter: love, care, nurturing, ongoing of the species; Tree of Life juxtaposed by Mother: roots, future; Peacock feathers juxtaposed by Daughter: beauty, potential; Fear cast out; Dancing Sorcerer (shaman): seeks to work with divine spark – of each object and the spirit of each stream, rock, tree; Halos for all people because all life is precious, God given, therefore holy; BUT, Phallic Rocket NASA: Dominance: science and technology cannot replace spiritual values – therefore importance to gain balance between science, technology and spirituality; Slain heads: ongoing suffering, fear. Man resisting Death for there’s always another thing to do. “Just a Minute!”… Apple, Serpent: temptation, conflict; Hands | _ : casting out fear; Tigers, Dragons, Doves, Tulips, Spirals, y-y, Tree-of-Life, Wheel of Life, Fragile Spirits; All-Seeing Eye; Striver on mountain: perpetuality of striving, struggling, suffering; Orchids for dissolving dark expectations and fears, letting in light and love, heart-centred joy, positivity; Ship for progress; Farmer for reliance, sustainability, future therefore optimism; Old man reading: acquisition of knowledge – Importance of Ritual, Learnedness, Wisdom: neverending. Conclusion:   Need to examine one’s inner values.

For closer examination click https://elizabethfwoodfieldart.wordpress.com/painting-perennial-dilemma-all-is-one/

Unfoldings  

Acrylic on Canvas *Frame 0642 x 0798 mm hardwood

My fascination with the world unfoldings was caught by the tree fern in my windy garden – the elegance and bizarre nature of new fronds, so symbolic in many cultures.

Brush Turkey Encounter

Acrylic on Canvas 0600 x 0900 mm  :  Fascinating Queensland forest, creatures and all! I spent a lovely day exploring this forest and enjoyed the play of light and shapes while like a mirage, I could see the sea beyond the trunks and leaves.

From Out of the Woods He Came

Acrylic on Canvas Framed 0672 x 0972 mm  :  Wanting to extend and combine my Etching Printmakings with my painting efforts, From Out of the Woods He Came includes original prints of the same name: I/II 1^st State (on Canson Cartridge Paper), II/II 1^st State (on Stonehenge Paper), and I/II 2^nd State (on Canson Cartridge Paper). The child emerging from the woods is allegorical for all children.  Awarded 1^st Judge Comments:  “Good use of mixed media. The work was challenging and confronting. I feel the artist has achieved what she set out to do! The title is intriguing and captivates the viewer. A very individual work.”

Turtle on the Edge

Acrylic on Canvas 0610 x 0914 mm  :  Where I live, turtles swim and mangroves thrive. Often, sadly, turtles become entangled in ropes of dillies and crabpots. The grand creatures really do teeter on the edge through the hand of man. (Won 2 Awards)

 End of Batch I (11 of 19plusOne Paintings) – Watch this space for  Batch II)

I wonder if I should have a Secret Gallery for my paintings? But then, who would see them?

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