(PR.co.nz) To declare that a work is complete is a mean feat in itself. This is because every inch of the 65x55cm (larger than A2) card is filled with minute yet realistic detailing; the whole drawing is done with very fine Copic Multiliners (0.03mm), with the exception of some colored pencil and pen added to create more depth. Natalie’s precise but lively style, has extremely fine impressionistic details and dashes of colour that allude to a sense of realism.
All of Natalie’s work is extremely intricate and detailed “Some of the work I do takes months or years to finish depending on how intricate and big the piece is. Even the smaller works can take weeks or months – time and patience really is a virtue”.
“Deciding to enter the Parkin Drawing Prize and being accepted is such an honour and big deal for me, I work on my artwork tirelessly, so being accepted is recognition of all the hard work I put into this piece. The last few months before the deadline were particularly full on!”
Natalie is 31, has no formal artistic training, and yet up until about about 5 years ago she mainly painted realistic and colourful oil portraits. Making the decision while living in Melbourne in 2015, she gave up pursuing a career in the comedy world to completely restart her already self-taught art practice, and go back to square one to relearn how to draw and illustrate.
From cartoons, to black and white line-art drawings of nature scenes, men with beards and dogs in the wind, or a one metre long panoramic drawing of the Wellington Botanic Gardens, her work became increasingly detailed until she was able to produce the detail she does today.
About the Fountain of Life and Death:
The Fountain is an intimate portrait of life and death inspired by experiences, good and bad, all of which have ultimately strengthened my foundations as a person.
All the faces and people hidden in the fountain’s structure represent various ideas… the objects that the lady in the center is holding are structures of the universe, and challenges that we all have to face. The flowers and water flowing from her hair represent life; and the chaotic, broken and interwoven fountain represents death. The lady in the middle represents the inner strength that everyone has access to.
Parkin Drawing Prize is on at the NZ Academy of Fine Arts (1 Queens Wharf, Wellington Waterfront) from 4 August – 30 August 2020.
See more of Natalie’s work on her Facebook page: www.facebook.com/nataliesfineart