SUE KNOWLES

I grew up in remote West Otago in a place called Moa Flat on a sheep and beef farm.  My mother balanced the practical farming life with the creation of a floral and productive garden that surrounded the house and looking after us kids.

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We were always making things as part of the entertainment on the farm including gardening and sewing.  At school, I made sculptural textile floral wall hangings.

Following a degree in horticulture, I worked in an industry always associated with fruit.

 

With a family and home of my own, I recreated the inspiration of my mum’s rose garden, recalling the cabbage roses, the Austin roses and other fragrant favourites and adding the luxury of peonies. Now I wake to an everchanging colour floral palette and fragrant bouquet from spring to autumn.

 

Naturally, the creative drive being ever present, art now finds form through paintings of flowers from my garden. I catch the flowers on a daily basis as they evolve, contemplate them in the changing light of the day, find that ultimate moment when they spark my joy and capture them on my canvas. Having that connection to what I have grown then transforming the blooms into a painterly tableau that lasts forever is my way of capturing an exquisite moment.

 

From my garden to the studio, it’s an immersion in colour and a study of light on form.