The Arctic - Iceland, Greenland and Svalbard with Aurora Expeditions
In July/August this year I was excited to take up the position of Artist in Residence for Aurora Expeditions onboard the Greg Mortimer as we travelled through Arctic waters from Iceland, via the east coast of Greenland, to circumnavigate the islands of Svalbard.
To keep my travelling art-kit light, I had simply paper, sharpies and some small tubes of gouache with me. All the works below were completed on the boat.
The first 5 paintings were made 'en plein aire'. When we were at anchor, I was able to draw directly from my cabin or from the land itself.
Some of the majestic fjords were captured as we cruised slowly past at under 5 knots (a requirement in certain waters where narwhal are more common) so I was able to quickly sketch the landscape, literally as it passed by my cabin.
To keep my travelling art-kit light, I had simply paper, sharpies and some small tubes of gouache with me. All the works below were completed on the boat.
The first 5 paintings were made 'en plein aire'. When we were at anchor, I was able to draw directly from my cabin or from the land itself.
Some of the majestic fjords were captured as we cruised slowly past at under 5 knots (a requirement in certain waters where narwhal are more common) so I was able to quickly sketch the landscape, literally as it passed by my cabin.
Greenland Fjord gouache on paper 21cm x 42cm
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View from the Cabin - Greenland gouache on paper
21cm x 21cm SOLD |
Muck Boots gouache on paper 21cm x 21cm SOLD
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OFjord - Greenland gouache on paper 21cm x 42cm
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Lillyhook Glacier - Greenland gouache on paper 21cm x 42cm
Further works were made from direct experiences and using composite photographic material.
As the trip continued and waste packaging was generated, I was able to recycle that packaging into art work by drawing and painting directly onto it. These irregularly sized and shaped packets from tea, drug and other products provide an excellent substrate, but need to be carefully matched to their subject matter. In this remote and fragile wilderness it felt like an important thing to be conserving and recycling as much of my used packaging as possible.
Some of these works were auctioned at the end of the trip, with the proceeds donated to the charity 'Take 3 for the Sea' - a global organisation that focuses on cleaning up plastic pollution from our marine environment.
The Walrus Watchers sharpie and gouache on unfolded packaging (panadol and ibuprofen) 15.5cm x 30cm
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Ittoqqortormitt Greenland gouache and sharpie on unfolded packaging 17.5cm x 24cm SOLD
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The Greg Mortimer (Altar piece) gouache and sharpie on unfolded Tetley tea packet 48cm x 42cm
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The Ice was all around... (Romer Fjord) gouache and sharpie on unfolded tea packet 29cm x 32cm SOLD
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The Puffin Hunters gouache and sharpie on unfolded packet (Movicol) 30cm x 48cm
The Kayakers gouache and sharpie on unfolded packaging (tea packet) 40cm x 30cm SOLD
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Plummeting Guillemots Sharpie and gouache on unfolded tea packet 29cm x 32cm SOLD
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The Getting There... sharpie and gouache on unfolded Panadol packet 19cm x 23cm
