Juju Gems is excited to welcome the vibrant work of Stephanie Fitzsimons to the walls of the Juju Boutique. Stephanie’s work will be on display and available for purchase from September 1st to November 30th. With an exhibition opening on the evening of Friday the 1st of September from 4 – 8pm where you can meet the artist, while enjoying light refreshments surrounded by colour and jewels.
Artist Bio
I am a Canberra based artist who currently loves painting floral still life’s, that are picked
from my kitchen garden or surrounding bushland of Canberra.
My process involves being visually delighted with a flower in my garden or on a bushwalk. It
is so pleasing to mix colours for flowers that are growing around my home as they seem to
reflect the light of the season.
The flowers form an arrangement using the principals of Ikebana. I enjoy the math’s and
structure of Japanese floral arrangements. The process of positioning and measuring the
height of the flowers is so calming and helps form a mental artwork in my mind’s eye.
From the Ikebana arrangement I make a pencil analysis of the shapes and lines I can see that
form a pleasing structure for the painting.
Using my pencil sketch I make a colour study using watercolours. Often this takes two or
three colour studies to make a pleasing arrangement of colours.
I then stretch my natural linen canvas; I enjoy preparing my own canvas as it is pleasing to
create the base for my painting. I like using clear primed linen, the colour of the linen forms
a shadow where my colours meet.
I make a sketch of shapes and lines of the floral still life in charcoal, then I use a pallet knife
to mix my oil paints and apply the colours to the canvas feeling the rhythm of the mark
making and delighting with a shapes and lines that are created.
My practice has its foundation of draftsmanship and colour theory from Merv Moriarty. I
took sumi painting classes in Japan and fell in love with Japanese traditional design and
colour as they contain emotion and association with nature.
I hope my paintings capture the beauty of the flowers through their amazing colours and
shapes.
“Happy are those who see beautiful things in modest places, where others see nothing.
Everything is beautiful, the whole thing is knowing for to interpret.” Camille Pissarro.
