Mangrove Sunrise Painting

Susan Skuse lives and works in the Gold Coast Hinterland and draws inspiration from the sub-tropical rainforests of the area. She first trained as an artist in the 1980’s and has more recently completed degrees in Fine Arts and Philosophy. Her current series of work brings together a diverse range of influences including Asian philosophy and traditional art, textile pattern, bird-watching and the phenomenology of perception. The works on show are part of her current series of paintings working with layers of colour and pattern combined with realistic depictions of Australian birds. Susan explains: “The work goes through four processes (at least) Firstly, I create an abstract colour background using vibrant lithographic inks with solvent to create fluid organic effects. Then I work with my ever growing library of custom made stencils – sometimes plant forms, sometimes abstract or classical patterns. When I am happy with the background I then sit back and consider what bird subject it suggests to me. The final stage is to re-balance the work tonally so that the subjects sit happily with the background.