Coco Parlé Hair Gallery - Gosford
from 10 March 2024
I am thrilled to have been invited to exhibit my work at the Coco Parlé Hair Gallery from the 10th March 2024. This unique opportunity to share my art in such an innovative space - where beauty and art converge - is a deep honour. As an artist, my journey has always been about exploring the connections between the world we see and the emotions we feel, which is the theme of this current collection. I hope you enjoy them in this great space.
Pearl Beach
Acrylic and Oil on Canvas
78cm x 78cm
When my kids were little this beach was a bit of curvy winding drive to get to but well worth it.
The water was calm and the sand was HOT!!! The café was always buzzing.
The ocean pool is shaded but the cliffs above with amazing patterns in the rocks and little rock pools form on the flats.
Definetly a must visit on the beautiful central coast.
Little Beach
Acrylic and Oil on Canvas
78cm x 78cm
Little Beach is a secluded cove in Bouddi National Park. the beach campground is located just metres from the sand tucked away in the pretty cove and surrounded by tranquility
Its on my list of places to stay but must be Glamping not Camping.
Tempest
Acrylic, ink & oil sticks on Canvas
54cm x 155cm
The clouds methought would open
and show riches
Ready to drop upon me, that when I waked,
I cried to dream again."
Caliban, Act 3 Scene 2
The Haven
Acrylic and Oil on Canvas
78cm x 78cm
The Haven has a special place in the heart of our family, and we will always have very fond memories. Like many Terrigal families, this place was our back garden for 9 moths of the year. A place of sunshine, happiness, fun and family. My little kids would play in the sand while we chatted with friends and neighbours, drank coffee, ate fish and chips, and everyone would cool off in the ocean
Occasionally, you'd have to avoid a jet-ski or a sting-ray or two, but beauty is made to be shared!
Underwater Love
Mixed Medium
117cm x 117cm
"Under the surface, where light diffuses into a soft, ethereal glow, the ocean flora move with a grace that transcends the world above. In this quiet realm, they sway, touched by the gentle currents, as if caressing one another in an eternal embrace. Each movement is a silent whisper of affection, a dance that speaks of unity and harmony.
Their fronds and leaves, slender and elegant, glide against each other in a fluid ballet, orchestrated by the push and pull of the sea's breath. It's a world where time seems to slow, allowing every interaction to unfold with a deliberate tenderness. Here, in the depth of the ocean's heart, plants entangle, not just surviving, but thriving through connection, boundless and deep."
Reflections from my family on Underwater Love
Oceans Song
Acrylic and Oil on Canvas
40cm x 122cm
"The whales do not sing because they have an answer, they sing because they have a song."
Gregory Colbert
After Party
Acrylic and Oil on Canvas
34cm x 60cm
Beneath the moonlight, the coral spawns, an underwater fiesta. This event, often unseen by human eyes, is the ocean's own after-party, a secret celebration.
The sea transforms into a living canvas, dotted with the ocean's confetti of billions of coral larvae, each a promise to the future.
Acrylic and Oil on Canvas
54cm x 155cm
Living near the Hawkesbury river brings volumes of inspiration to lots of local artists in the area.
We recently went on a holiday on the Hawkesbury on a houseboat and under us where hundreds of beautiful Jelly blubbers calmly floating & pulsing by the boat.
They were a range of shades from pale pink through to creams and peaches contrasting the greens and black of the river water. Big ones, little ones, upside down ones and huge quite scary looking ones.
This artwork is for them.
Bloom
Physalis
Mixed Medium
95cm x 125cm
The portuguese man o’war , the Blue bottle or the scientific name Physalia physalis is one of the fun finds on our beaches.
Close up they are the brightest of blues with translucent, iridescent sails and a bubble to keep them on the surface with long stinging tentcle below trailing behind.
Don’t swim if you see these washed up on the beach as they give a nasty sting.
Don’t let anyone tell you that peeing on the sting works.
Tangled in the Deep
(Adolescence)
Acrylic and Oil on Canvas
78cm x 78cm
"In the silence beneath the surface, she floats, her body suspended in an embrace that both cradles and confines. Around her, the water whispers expectation, each ripple a voice demanding conformity, pressing against her skin like the weight of a thousand oceans. It is here, in this submerged world, that she finds herself drowning, not in the waters of the sea, but in the currents of pressure that seek to shape her into an image not her own.
But down here, amidst the silence and the pressure, she finds a voice that is truly hers. As the depths threaten to swallow her whole, she learns to breathe, finding in the pressure, not her demise, but the strength to rise above, to break the surface tension of judgment and emerge, not as the world demands, but as herself, unyielding and free.
Reflections from my family on 'Adolescence'
The Shallow
(Adulthood)
Acylic, ink & oil pastels on canvas
80cm x 40cm
"In the twilight, a figure carves a path through the water. She is vulnerability and strength, shedding society from her shoulders. Each step is a rebellion, a defiance against expectations, deadlines, and the pursuit of "success". The ocean is mystery and calm to her, kissed by the fading light of day. It calls her, a siren of freedom and possibility; solace in its chilled embrace. The rhythmic cadence of the waves erase the imprints of the world she leaves behind.
In this moment, she is no longer defined by her career, her relationships, or the expectations of others. She is elemental. The water does not judge her, merely embraces her flaws and her beauty with equal measure. Here, as the sun dips below the horizon, painting the sky in hues of gold and crimson, she is both the drop and the ocean, insignificant and omnipotent, lost and found in the same breath."
Reflections from my family on 'Adulthood'
Wrapped in an Ocean Blanket
(Motherhood)
Mixed Medium
Original not for Sale - PRINTS ONLY
The ocean as a metaphor for the paradoxical nature of motherhood: femininity’s most beautiful gift, but greatest burden.
Motherhood is not being sure if you are sinking, swimming or floating. Motherhood is woken dreams; it is drowning while breathing under water; it is anxious serenity; disoriented determination; infinite reflection. It is love, frustration, happiness and home.
In the ocean, the water holds her tight, the cycle of life resets. The mother is the child again, and they are one and the same."
Reflections from my family on "Motherhood"
Elysian Pools
Acrylic, Paint Pens, Ink, Canvas
92cm x 122cm
Elysian means 'Blissful State'
I had fun with this one as its its third life on this canvas so it has created a feeling of depth in the painting.
The black tendrils reaching up under the waves were created with acryli indigo Inks and my favourite Ryobi leaf blower.
Kelptime Dreaming
Acrylic and Oil on Canvas
125cm x 94cm
Beneath the waters of our oceans are the Kelp forrests.
The dark shadowy fronds slowly waving back and forth with the tides create a protected place for our sea life. A place that’s calm and safe for them to hide, eat, & sleep.
Kelp has been used by our Aboriginal people for thousands of years for cultural activities, medicial uses , food & domestic activities.
These Kelp forests are recognised as one of the most productive and Dynamic ecosystems on Earth so we need to protect them.
Washed Pink
Acrylic and Oil on Canvas
34cm x 60cm
I have always been captivated by the collection of rocks between the Haven and Terrigal beach, particularly as the sun descends and they change colour — oranges, reds, and pinks mingling with their natural shades. Shadows lengthen, creating a dramatic contrast between the illuminated surfaces facing the sun and the darker, cooler tones on the other side. The texture of the rocks becomes more pronounced under this light, highlighting their rough, weathered surfaces or the smooth, polished finish of those frequently caressed by the waves.
This interplay of light and shadow, warmth and color, makes this part of our home a stunning, serene spectacle.